Retribution
by Kidcomfy
Summary: An insane serial killer is on the loose, targeting female cops. Story is complete.
1. Default Chapter

Disclaimer: I have nothing to disclaim yet...this guy is my own demon. This story is a bit violent...I needed to purge it from my system. If you read it, please review it.  
  
~Retribution~  
  
Chapter One:  
  
"Open up, it's the police."  
  
The tv was on, sending shadows flickering around the room. Nothing else was moving. The episode of Cagney and Lacy, that fateful episode, had ended eight or nine hours ago. There was a stream of info-mercials, one after the other, but he didn't notice.  
  
He sat there staring, not seeing...yet looking deep into the darkness that had enveloped his mind. His eyes were open in a glassy stare, unblinking. His damp hair clung to his face, pale and waxen. His mouth was slightly open in a frozen look of anguish. His left hand was clutching the arm of the easy chair with his nails buried cuticle deep into the cloth and his right hand was still holding the butt of a cigarette that had burned down hours before.  
  
Every flicker of the tv lit a memory in his mind. A small boy crouching deep into the corner of a dark closet. Tears stinging his eyes. A familiar voice floating under the door like smoke from a fire beginning to blaze. A woman's voice, laughing wildly, then yelling angry words. The door bursting open. The young boy being dragged, screaming from the darkness. Dragged to the hot stove, the bathtub of water filled with ice, the kitchen with various tools capable of inflicting unbearable pain.   
  
The worst, of the multitude of tortures, was the threat of learning what it felt like to die. A pillow over the face, a cloth stuffed down his throat, her hand covering his mouth and nose...all done to the point of loosing consciousness. Her gun shoved into his mouth as she screamed " open up...it's the police" Then her wild laughter as she pulled the trigger, saying "this time I put one in...'click'...this is the one...'click'...it must be in the next one ...'click."   
  
Some days she would pick him up from school in the squad car with her partner. Those days were the worst. Something bad had happened on her job and she would have to work late. They would pick him up and take him home. She'd tell her partner that a neighbor was inside to baby sit for him until she got off work. At first even he would believe her. Her partner would wait in the car while she took him inside. She called him a perp. She would cuff his arms to his ankles behind his back and stuff him into the oven. This was solitary confinement. Then she would say, "When I get home, I'll show you how we get confessions from the bad guys."  
  
He would be in the oven, the faint smell of gas and stale food, causing nausea, and adding to the cramping...in his arms, his legs, and his stomach. The cramps were unbearable. He would be sweating and shaking at the same time. He would get delusional. He would cry for help, hoping that when he finally heard someone come in...heard the squeak of the oven door opening, that it was not her. God don't let it be her!   
  
Getting confessions consisted of inflicting pain in various ways. Her favorite was to heat the spatula on the open flame of the stove. She would scream at him, 'Did you make this mess?' Mud on the floor, a dirty glass, anything. He would yell yes, even if he didn't. He would admit through tears that he was guilty as charged. And then she would burn him anyway. He remembered the smell of cooked flesh, the wet feeling of his skin melting to the metal, and screaming until he passed out.  
  
He remembers when he first understood the term 'live' wire. She would put a plug in an outlet that had only two bare wires on the other end, and when she touched them to his arm or leg, it would cause a sensation of live bugs running through and eating his skin.   
  
One night she came home dressed in her uniform. She was different somehow. He had never seen her look sad before. She was crying and talking softly to no one. He didn't understand her. Someone said she couldn't do her job because she was a girl, was all he could grasp of her ramblings.   
  
She sat him on her lap and emptied all the bullets from her gun. She took one and showed it to him and said "this is the one." Placing it into one of the chambers and closing it up, she made him hold the gun in his hands. It was cold and heavy. She pointed the gun at his face and wrapped her hands around his. "We gotta go." she said sadly. 'click'. She then turned the gun towards her own face, while she spoke softly. 'click'. He still didn't understand what she was talking about as she turned the gun to his face again. 'click'. As she turned the gun back to her face, he pulled his hands away and hid them behind his back.   
  
The explosion was deafening. The force of the gun, kicked him backwards off her lap. In a blur of red, he saw her face cave in and scatter around the room. She sprayed onto him, on his face and clothes. He could taste her in his mouth. He laid there on the floor shaking until he convulsed himself into the darkness. And that is where the child's life ended and 'his' life began. He had absolutely no memory of that child's life...until now.  
  
Hours passed...as memories...all of them, attacked him in the dark. All because of a scene from Cagney and Lacy. Something triggered a memory, that was previously buried, of a small boy whose mother was an insane cop. His eye twitched. His hand grabbed the remote and shut the tv off. Suddenly it was clear. He now understood what she was trying to get him to do. He should never have pulled his hands away that day. That was suppose to be his retribution. 


	2. The Calm Before The Storm

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters from third watch...but I do own all the ones that don't belong to them. If you read this, please review it.  
  
Chapter Two:  
  
"The Calm Before The Storm"  
  
It's June, and finally...it's a nice day. It has rained three or four days in a row. We get a nice day here and there, teasing that it will be summer soon, and then it gets cold and rainy again. It is sixty two degrees, and after a bitter cold winter, this feels warm...to New Yorkers any way. People are out in droves.  
  
Faith watches, as a nervous mom hovers over her young daughter playing on the jungle gym. A bit too cautiously she thinks...maybe not. She switches her gaze over to another mom, yelling at her son for throwing stones. It's refreshing to see a child being disciplined for a change, unlike the two boys that are fighting precariously on top of the slide. Where are their parents? Oh well...she'll meet them soon enough in juvy court, she imagines.   
  
Being a parent is more than just providing for your kids. It's also about caring for and nurturing them...guiding them and shaping them for the future. Being a mom, and a cop, Faith Yokas is all too aware of this.  
  
She is thinking about her own children, hoping they are out enjoying the day and wishing that she owned a house with a yard, instead of the apartment that she has lived in all of her life. Someday ...   
  
She and Fred are good providers, and she thinks that she is a good mother, although she wishes she could be there more for them. Be more involved in their lives. But there are worse parents out there. God...she knows that better than most, with the crap she has to see every day.  
  
Bosco has them sitting near the park and the sun feels warm in the RMP. He is reading the sports page and Faith started to read the headlines, but they were depressing and ruining her good mood, so she tossed it aside, and is just enjoying the sun. She could sit here till it gets dark.   
  
Bosco justifies them parking here, by saying that they are deterring muggers from bothering the working stiffs that are walking home through the park. Faith doesn't argue with him...not today. But she can see that he is almost done with the paper and she knows that soon, he is going to become his usual, mood wrecking self, his dark attitude, like a storm cloud moving in on this nice day. Any minute...he is going to kill the peace and...   
  
  
  
"Man it's quiet today. We've been out here over an hour and no calls." He haphazardly folds the paper and stuffs it under the seat.   
  
"Quiet is good." She says lazily.  
  
"No, it's "too" quiet."  
  
"It can't "be" too quiet." She's mildly annoyed by his interruption.  
  
"Well today it is. I'm bored."   
  
"Well I'm enjoying it. Don't jinx it."   
  
Bosco says, "It feels like the calm before the storm. Ya know?" she glances at him as he continues. "There's some nutcase out there," he glances back at her, "and there are thousands of them, ...and he is just looken for some bonehead thing to do to mess up my day. He's thinken 'what can I do to screw with Boscarelli today."  
  
"Don't the nutcases usually refer to you by your first name?" She asks, trying to keep the mood light. Just then the radio sounds off, '10-13 all units respond 104 and King.'   
  
"Aw Bosco I knew you'd jinx it. Don't it bother you, that you and the nutcases are on the same wavelength?" She answers the call and turns on the siren.  
  
They arrive at the scene, which appears to be a car accident. The EMTs are closing the back door to their bus and are preparing to speed away. There are three other patrol cars at the scene and a tow truck. Three more patrol cars are arriving and most of the officers, including Sully and his partner Davis, are questioning people in the crowd. Lieutenant Swersky is giving instructions to the foot patrol over his walkie-talkie.   
  
"What's going on Lieu?" Faiths asks looking around "I thought this was a 10-13."  
  
"It is." He answers. "Officer Lucas is missing."  
  
"Missing!" Bosco says making a sour face.  
  
"Were they involved in that accident?" Faith asks.  
  
"No, they were on crowd control. Martin says he last saw her over there." The Lieutenant points towards the intersection where the ambulance was. "He said that Lucas radioed in that someone approached her and said their kid was hurt. She was going to check it out. He hasn't seen her since and she isn't responding on her radio."  
  
"Did anyone see what direction she went in...or what the person looked like?" Faith asked concerned.  
  
"I have several units questioning the crowd now."  
  
Just then Sully walks up. "Well this is what we got so far." He glances quickly at his notes, and says, "I found a lady that said Lucas was talking to a tall guy with dark hair, a guy told me it was a short guy with blonde hair and a black hat, and that whack-job on the corner says she was abducted by aliens and the FBI knows all about it. Oh yah, and a little kid said it was the guy running the magazine stand."   
  
Faith asks the lieutenant, "Where do you want us?" at the same time Bosco says "Well it looks like you have plenty of help..."   
  
Ignoring Bosco, the lieutenant says to Faith, "Why don't you start in the 105 block. Ask people if they saw Lucas, or an injured kid. It could have happened a block or two from here."  
  
Faith nods and looks around. She starts walking slowly up the street. Bosco is complaining at her side. "Aww...what a waste of time. She's probably off using the ladies room somewhere. Or doing some personal feminine thing, and she doesn't want to be bothered so she turned off her radio."   
  
Faith does her best to ignore him, like usual. She is more worried about the missing officer than Bosco's need for excitement. But sometimes...like right now...she has the urge to grab his ear lobe, like she does to her son, and tell him to stop his whinen.   
  
She stops, looking across the street, and slaps Bosco in the shoulder with the back of her hand. "C'mon." She holds her hand up to slow an approaching car and hurries across the street.   
  
"Where are we going?" he asks as he hurries after her.  
  
"Lucas either turned off her radio or she is somewhere that she can't get reception."  
  
Bosco looks at the end of the alley that she was leading them down and he noticed a sign that read 'Underground Parking-Customers Only'. He says to her, "Smart thinking, I'll bet a radio won't work in there."  
  
They enter the garage through a ramp. There are only five cars parked inside and nothing else. They walk to the middle and notice four doors, two at either end, each leading to a different store. "Damn it." Faith puts her hands on her hips and looks around frustrated.  
  
"Try your radio." Bosco says.  
  
She tries calling the Lieutenant. No response. Then she tries calling central. Nothing.  
  
"She was here. I just know it. Where would she go from here?" After a second she says, "Lets split up. You check those doors and..."  
  
"No...were not splitting up. One person is missing already."  
  
"Bosco...are you worried about me?" she says, mildly surprised.  
  
He gets a bugged look on his face and says, "Yah right...I just don't want to be here all night looking for two of you."  
  
"Your concern is overwhelming." As they walk towards one of the doors, Faith steps on a piece of plastic and it breaks with a loud 'crack'. "What is that?"  
  
"Looks like garbage to me."  
  
Faith picks up several pieces and examines them. "This looks like a broken radio?" She walks up to Bosco and compares the pieces to his radio. "I think it is. Go get the Lieutenant."   
  
[an hour later]  
  
The garage is tied off in crime scene tape. There are several detectives looking at tread marks on the ground. Some officers are questioning the owners of the vehicles that were parked in the garage and forensics is dusting for fingerprints and taking samples of the drops of blood that were on the ground near the broken radio.   
  
The lieutenant is talking to Maria Lucas' partner, officer Dale Martin. He is looking at the ground and rubbing his forehead with his hand. His shoulders are sagging, and having to tell his version of what happened, over and over, is taking it's toll on him. It's obvious he is pretty upset. The Lieutenant puts his hand on Martin's shoulder and nods to him. Martin puts his hat on and walks out slowly.   
  
Faith heard that Martin and Lucas were pretty close. This stood out in her mind, because Bosco is the one that told her. He mentioned it to her casually one day in the car, and it struck her as odd that he would care about something like that, much less mention it to her out of the blue.   
  
Faith is watching him sadly, then she turns to Bosco and says "We're cleared to leave. Let's get out of here." She looks at Bosco who is also watching Martin and she realizes his thoughts are far away. "Bosco...what is it? What are ya thinking about?"   
  
"Huh...I was just thinken that Martin don't seem to be doen much to help his partner. She disappeared, right out from under his nose. You'd think that he'd be feeling a little responsible. I mean...I would be running all around the city trying to find her."   
  
"What good would that do? Runnen all around the city like a mad man. All the clues are here. Everyone is working on it."  
  
  
  
"Then where the hell is he goen?"  
  
"I would guess...to tell Lucas' family."  
  
"Oh." Bosco's expression changed. He got suddenly quiet and that far away look came back. 


	3. Partners

Thanks for the reviews. I really appreciate it when you take the time to tell me what you think of the story.   
  
Chapter Three:  
  
"Partners"  
  
[The lieutenant is briefing the officers at roll call, it is a few days later]  
  
"As I'm sure you all know, Lucas is still missing. She was last seen with this man." He holds up a drawing of a face and passes a stack of them out. "We got this description from the guy at the magazine stand. He said this man approached Lucas and told her his child was injured. He made Lucas follow him. This guy was distraught and 'convincing'. He led her into the parking garage and we have no evidence that she ever walked out. The blood in the garage belonged to Lucas and the broken radio tells us there was a struggle. People in the parking garage said that a black van had been parked in that spot earlier but we have no other description and we don't know that it was actually involved.  
  
"What about the accident." Yokas asked. "Do they think it is somehow related?"  
  
"Possibly. They're still looking into it. Just be aware that the accident was caused by someone firing a paint ball at the windshield of a car as it approached the intersection, causing it to loose control."  
  
"What about Lucas' personal life? Could it be someone she knew?" Bosco asked.  
  
"So far they have no suspects in that direction. I'll let you know more as it comes in. If there are no other questions...keep your eyes open out there. Especially for this guy...it's personal...it's family."  
  
[The officers are gathered at the equipment cage]  
  
Sully says, "I hear Martin is taking it pretty hard."  
  
Davis asks, "Was Lucas married?"  
  
Bosco pipes in "Nah...she was gay."  
  
Sully replies, "Yah but she has a 'life partner'."  
  
Bosco says in an annoyed tone, "It's not the same thing. I mean, it's not like she has a husband and kids waiting on her."  
  
"What the hell does that mean?" Yokas barks. "What...people who are gay don't care as much as straight people?"  
  
He was a little pissed that she snapped at him like she did. After all, he was actually putting her on a higher scale than Lucas. "You know what I mean."  
  
Egging him on Sully says "No...why don't you explain it to us."  
  
"I mean...it's not like she has a family or anything."  
  
"Every one has family." Yokas says sharply. Then holding her hands up in a surrender motion she says, "Ya know what Bosco, I really can't deal with your stupidity today." and walks away from him.  
  
Sully nudges Davis and says, "Just think what he'd be like without all his sensitivity training." And Davis adds, "I think it's gonna be a long day for 55David." They walk away from Bosco chuckling.  
  
Bosco stands there looking confused as they walk away. "What...I can be sensitive. What's with everyone today?"  
  
The only one still standing there is Gussler. "I think it may be the brotherhood thing."  
  
Bosco squints at him and says, "Lucas isn't a brother...she's a girl."  
  
"Yah...so it's kinda like someone messed with our sister I guess. Maybe that's why Yokas is upset. She's taking it more personal...being a female cop an all." The look that Bosco was giving him made him uneasy so he quickly added, "But what do I know."  
  
Bosco looks at him angrily and says, "You're right...You don't know."  
  
Faith walked out to the RMP, her mood darkening. She was tired of apologizing for Bosco, and for whatever reason, she somehow felt a connection to this case. She didn't know Lucas, not personally, but intuitively maybe...she knew that Lucas had gone into that parking garage. She felt that connection, laced with an uneasiness she couldn't shake. It was really annoying her that her partner was not taking this more serious.  
  
  
  
Bosco walks out to the car and finds Yokas sitting in the driver's seat. Normally he would drive but he thought better of annoying her any more, so he climbed into the passenger side. As they drove away, he noticed the picture tucked under the visor. He took it and studied it.   
  
Bosco always hated these artist renderings. They just vaguely looked like the person they were suppose to be. He looked at the face staring blankly off the paper. Glancing out the window he noted that this face could be the guy at the bus stop, the one loading the truck, or even the guy walking out of the diner. Then he noticed something else and said out loud "Hunh."  
  
"What?" Faith asked.  
  
"This picture was drawn by Gussler."  
  
"No kidding? I guess they found something he's good at."  
  
"Yah...coz he SUCKS at police work." Bosco spit that out a little too venomously. But what 'did' Gussler know...certainly not more about Faith than he did...her partner of seven years. Bosco looked out the window, wishing that someone would do something illegal right now. Right in front of him, so he could vent some of this anger he was feeling. Anger was easier than being sensitive. And he was 'angry' that Faith snapped at him, and even 'angrier' that Gussler was the one to understand why.  
  
He couldn't stop thinking about what Gussler had said to him. About Faith being female. Bos never really thought of her that way. She was the toughest person he knew. But it was feasible to think of her like a sister. Not just in a cop kind of way, but in a 'listen to my problems...I'll be there when you need me,' kind of way. And God help the guy who tried to hurt her while he was around. He'd fuck 'em up, the way he did the guy that beat his mom. Boy...Martin really screwed the pooch yesterday, letting something happen to his partner like that.  
  
He then thought of Martin walking out of the Parking garage yesterday, alone...without his partner. He looked like the weight of the world was on his shoulders. The hardest thing for a cop to accept was the loss of their partner. Lucas could be dead, it is certain she is hurt from the blood on the scene, and it happened fifty yards from where Martin stood.   
  
Then he thought...what may be tougher than that, would be to face the family of that partner.   
  
Reluctantly he pictured himself telling Fred that Faith was missing. It would be easier if she wasn't married...or like he tried to express earlier...easier if she was gay. And then he pictured Faith's kids crying for their mother. He pictured her parents. That would send her father drinking off the edge for sure, and for that matter, Fred too. And then he thought of how all the other cops would be looking at him, with sympathy, or worse...with accusing glances for losing her on his watch. For the first time Bosco felt bad for the Martin.  
  
He glanced over at Faith.   
  
She glanced back and said "What?"  
  
"Nothing."   
  
Expecting a sarcastic remark, she was kind of relieved that he looked...what was it...he looked sad. She was going to ask him what he was thinking about, but knowing Bosco, it was probably something trivial like...his latest fling is going away for the week-end and he doesn't know how he's going to get his bean waxed.  
  
The radio came to life. '55 David...we have a 10-31...Burglary in progress...1217 Arthur...approach with out siren.'  
  
Bosco answered "55 David 1217 Arthur."  
  
They arrive at the scene and a man comes out of a doughnut shop. He runs to the car and says "I'm the one that called. There are two guys taking stuff out of the shop next door. They're in the back loading a truck."  
  
They tell him to go back inside while they look down the alley. They can just see the bed of a truck that two guys are laying a tarp over. Bosco tells Faith to drive up to the next alley and cut them off while he approaches on foot.  
  
He works his way up the alley ducking from dumpster to dumpster. So far he can see two of them, but he can't tell if they are armed. He has his gun drawn, as he inches closer. His adrenaline is pumping, and his mind is sorting through different scenarios of what may happen in the next few minutes. The one thing he is sure of...when he gets there, Faith will be there backing him up.   
  
He is getting closer to the corner, and for just a split second, it occurs to him...what if she isn't?   
  
Bosco's steps have quickened and so has his breathing, as he and the barrel of his gun, peek around the building. The two men are nonchalantly tying down the tarp as if they belong here. Bosco has the driver in his site. He can't let them get into the truck. He is psyching himself up to step around the corner and make the announcement that he is here. But he hesitates.   
  
What if they are armed? What if really do belong here? Where is Faith?  
  
The men are now standing at the front of the truck and they are opening the doors. Bosco has to make a move. He steps around the building and yells. "Stop right there jag-off!" as he fixes his gun on the driver. "Don't get in that truck!"  
  
The men reel around to face Bosco and raise their hands in the air. There is a moment of relief, as Bosco has them looking like deer in his headlights. But for a split second, he takes his eyes off the driver and scans the alley ahead of them. Where the fuck is she? She should be here by now. What if...  
  
Both men see it...the loss of concentration...his attention is distracted from them for a second, and they jump into the truck.   
  
The tires squeal as they pull away and Bosco watches helplessly. Then suddenly...there she is. The RMP pulls out from the next alley, blocking their path. The truck skids to a halt and Faith jumps out of the car and lays her arms across the roof. She points her gun at them as she yells, "Put your hands where I can see them!"  
  
The driver raises his hands. She yells again "Where I can see them!"  
  
Bosco has run to the back of the truck and is slowly walking towards the drivers door with his gun drawn. The driver has both of his hands in the air sticking out the window. The passenger has not yet shown his hands.   
  
Faith yells to them again..."I want to see your hands...NOW! Get them out the window!"  
  
Paying no attention to the fact that Faith was getting no response from the passenger, Bosco opens the drivers door and starts to pull the driver out of the car. He is pissed off that he almost let them get away and he plans to take it out on the driver. "Get out of the car you asshole. Try to run from me? I'll kick your ass."   
  
Suddenly, Faith sees the passenger raise his arm just slightly above the dash and catches a brief glimpse of a gun pointed towards the drivers window. She yells "GUN...BOSCO!" as she fires through the windshield hitting the passenger in the shoulder.  
  
Bosco throws himself backwards against the truck as the gun the passenger was holding is discharged, striking the driver in the back. The driver falls out onto the ground. Faith runs to the passenger side of the truck, and at gunpoint, pulls the guy out and to the ground. He yells out in pain as she cuffs him. "Bosco...Bosco, you alright?"   
  
"I'm ok, Faith! Jesus. I never saw it. I never saw the gun." Bosco is breathing hard and his hands are shaking. And he never would admit it to her, but this thing with Lucas is distracting him.   
  
  
  
[Faith and Bosco are back at the precinct after escorting the two robbers to the hospital]  
  
Gussler is at the front desk as they walk in. "Hey I hear you guys had a shoot out. Everyone ok?"  
  
Bosco says, "We are...they ain't. Ya don't mess with my partner." He makes a gun with his thumb and index finger and blows on the tip. He's glad they ran into Gussler. For some reason he feels the need to show Gussler that he and Faith are still tight. She isn't mad at him...and he didn't loose her like Martin did.   
  
"You should have seen us. Our teamwork was a thing of beauty. The timing was exact. We were in perfect synch. Right partner?"  
  
"Oh yah...like a pair of Swiss watches." She says, then rolls her eyes.  
  
As Bosco walks away, Gussler says to Faith, "Did you hear?"  
  
"Hear what?"  
  
"Another female cop is missing. They just asked me to fax my drawing of our suspect over to them."  
  
"Who? Who is missing?"  
  
"Patty Wilson from the sixty third. She's partners with Tommy Collins."  
  
"What happened?"   
  
"Can't find her." He says matter-of-factly.  
  
"I mean...where were they, that she is missing from?" she says, trying not to sound annoyed.  
  
"Oh...they responded to a call about vandals in a parking lot. They split up to search for the perps and she disappeared. That's all I know...it just came over the radio a few minutes ago. The whole 63rd is looking for her."  
  
"Well I'm gonna be doing reports at the desk with Bosco. Any thing comes in about it, I want you to come and tell me."  
  
"Roger." He says, then struts away as if he was sent on important police business.  
  
[A few hours later]  
  
Faith was just finishing her report on the burglary. She looked up as she took a sip of coffee and found Gussler standing at her desk. "You got something Steve?"  
  
"Yah...I thought you would want to know..." He looks down at the ground. Other cops were good at talking out bad news, but he was not.   
  
"You hear something about Patty?" Faith asks.   
  
"Uh...not exactly." He continued looking at the ground. "Umm...They found Maria Lucas." He then looked up to see her reaction, hoping it wasn't going to be emotional because he really didn't know how to handle that. "She's...uh...they found her body."  
  
"Oh God...where?"  
  
"Well...some joggers found her body in the park this afternoon. They didn't ID her until now."  
  
Bosco looks up from his desk and says sarcastically, "They didn't recognize a cop from their own precinct, that has been missing, and that they have been looking for?"   
  
Gussler looked at him and voiced what Faith had already guessed. "She was not recognizable. She was pretty messed up. I heard that her face was blown off."  
  
Bosco says softly, "God Damn."   
  
Faith got up and walked away. 


	4. Daniel Finch

Thanks for all the reviews, I love reading them....lets me know you're still with me.   
  
I still don't own the characters from Third Watch, but I do own all the ones I made up.  
  
Chapter Four:  
  
"Daniel Finch"  
  
In a one room-hunting cabin, he sits in a chair in front of the body on the floor. A tear runs down to the stubble on his face. His eyes are darting around the room as he watches a scene that is playing out in his mind. His hands are shaking as he raises his fists to his face. He eyes are wide open and his mouth also falls open, as he squeezes his cheeks into a distorted, silent scream.   
  
Daniel Finch was a stable, though lonely truck driver just a few days ago. He grew up an orphan in the system, but all in all he had no complaints. He had no memory of his parents and never tried to find out about them or his life before he entered the system. He was shuffled from family to family but none of them ever treated him badly. It was really his fault that he got moved so often. He just didn't like the closeness of people. He was troubled but not really in trouble. He skipped school a lot, but never had problems with the law. To the contrary, he really could not stand the thought of ever being arrested. Police made him nervous. He was shy and introverted and perfectly happy being left alone.   
  
Driving a truck was the perfect job for him. He could be alone for days at a time on the road. He spent all of his days driving cross-country, eating alone in truck stops, and sleeping in cheap hotels along his route. He made a decent living that paid for his tiny apartment. He had bought a small piece of land in the woods years ago, and built a cabin on it. He didn't even get electric hooked up for 5 years. Not until they ran some poles for a resort nearby, and the only reason he got the electric then, was so he could have a refrigerator.   
  
The area of woods that his cabin stood on was popular for hunting but he never did hunt. He was afraid of guns. He just came up here during the fall and enjoyed the serenity of the woods. He loved to listen to the sound of birds and the silence of only the wind blowing through the trees. He loved hearing no traffic. Loved the quiet, the peace.  
  
But now he could find no peace. He had these thoughts, this woman, in his head and she won't give him any peace. He had been staring at her body for hours. The sounds and thoughts in his head should leave now, but they don't. He was horrified at what he did but this is the only way to make it stop and send it back to where it had been locked away for all those years.   
  
He felt some release as he was choking her. God it felt good to see the look on her face. That look 'he' must have had as a child. Terrified. Pained. Trying to scream for help with no voice. Begging for her to stop with just his eyes. He saw it there in her face. And it felt good. If he can do this to her until she understands what she put him through, if she would confess what she did, then he will be well again, and she will leave him and never return.   
  
And she was starting to understand. He could see it in her eyes, briefly. But now she laid there, with no fear, no pain, mocking him with her empty stare. It is still inside of him. If only he had not pulled his hands away from hers that day as he sat on her lap. He would have killed her, and maybe then she would have really died. But he was just a child then. Now, he must make 'her' understand what she put him through and make her confess what she did to him, and then together, they will end it for good.  
  
  
  
He drags her body out to the back of the cabin, holds out her revolver, and pointing it at her face, he pulls the trigger. The sound of the shot echoes out into the still air with the sound of birds squawking as they take flight. He holds his arms out to his sides, palms up, as if he is waiting for something within him to also take flight. But nothing does. The recoil from the revolver was all he felt. No release. No easing of pain. No relief. He must try again.   
  
He has to find a place to dump her body and then he has to come up with a plan to get another. It will be getting dark soon. He will drive back into the city, and as soon as it is dark enough he will pull off on a side road and dump her body out. He carefully lays her out on a tarp in the back of the van. He still hasn't decided where he is going to look for her this time. The 55th is where his mother worked but the 63rd was so much easier. He could sit at the diner across the street and watch for her. Sometimes they came in to the diner. Yes, he was hungry anyway. That will be his plan.  
  
[It is later that night, he is sitting in the diner ]  
  
Dumping off the body was easy. He wonders how long it will take before she is found. He watches the cop cars come and go at the precinct across the street. They always made him feel uncomfortable but even more so with his horrible secret. Two officers walk in the diner and pass by him. He feels his face flush. He opens up the menu and hides inside it.   
  
He is starting to feel self conscious. He decides to leave and check out the 55th, when he hears a burst of laughter from beyond the menu coming from the next booth. He looks around the menu and there she was, getting into the booth right in front of him. God...she even had the same laugh as his mother. She is talking to another cop, probably her partner. They call the waitress over and order food. He waits until their food is brought to them, then he calls the waitress over and asks for his check. He has to start getting his plan in motion.  
  
  
  
Daniel finds a phone booth not too far from the diner and parks just past it. He waits about fifteen minutes, to give them time to finish eating. He goes into the back of the van, removes his coat, and lays in the blood that has pooled into the middle of the tarp. He then folds the tarp neatly, goes out to the phone booth and calls 911, reporting that he was mugged.  
  
Within seconds a unit...'her' unit, pulls up. As they get out of the car, he approaches her and starts yelling wildly "he robbed me!". She asks him if he is ok. She sees the blood under his coat and tries to get him to sit down on the sidewalk. "Hurry! He went down there! You can still catch him" He points down the alley. But at the same time he grabs his chest and leans on her for support as though he is injured. "He's in that car. Down at the end! I saw him get in it. He's still there!"   
  
Concerned about his wound she reaches for her radio. He clutches on to her arm, leaning all of his weight on her, preventing her from calling for help. "You have to catch him he is right there!" He grabs her partner by the arm and pleads with him, "Please! He took my wallet...all my money. He got in that car right down there! You can still catch him!" Her partner pulls his gun and says, "I'll go check it out. Call for back up and a bus."   
  
The second her partner turns his back, Daniel pretends to feel dizzy. She tries to use the radio, but he drops against her as if he's fainting. He staggers over to the van, still grasping her arm. She tries to get him to sit down on the side walk so she can look at his injury but he leads her to the back of the van. "I can sit here" he says pulling the door open. His legs buckle and when she grabs his arm to help him stand, he swings his elbow up catching her hard under the chin.   
  
She falls back against the open door and he grabs her by the throat with both hands pushing her down into the back of the van. She reaches for her gun but his body is pressing against her, blocking her reach. The pressure on her neck is unbearable. She grabs his wrists, clawing at his fingers. She thrashes for his face. He climbs next to her in the van and for a second, loosens his grip on her throat. She gets a gulp of air as he wraps his arm around her neck and hoists her all the way inside the van. He is running out of time. He pulls her night stick out of it's holder and stepping back, he swings it at her face. Her head snaps to the right, her arms fall limp and her body relaxes.   
  
He quickly closes the door, hops into the drivers seat and slowly drives away. He hears her radio crackle. It is her partner calling to say that he checked out the car and it was empty. He repeatedly calls her name. Gina. His voice becomes breathy. He is running. There is panic in his tone as he calls her name over and over. As soon as he has driven a safe distance away, Daniel pulls over and smashes her radio, removes her gun belt and cuffs her hands behind her back.   
  
The headlights from his van bounce through the darkness as he drives along the dirt road leading to his cabin. The night is particularly dark with no moon, and the sky is overcast from the rain that just stopped falling. He looks into the back of his van at her body laying on the floor. She hasn't stirred or made a sound the whole ride. The other two were already thrashing and fighting with the cuffs by now. Especially during this bouncy ride through the woods.  
  
Daniel wonders if maybe he hit her a bit too hard, but then dismisses the thought by reasoning that this is what cops do. They pretend they are one thing and then they pounce on you when you start to trust them. She is faking it. He entertains the idea that this little stunt will be punished.   
  
He parks the van in front of the cabin and steps out onto the wet ground. The air smells crisp and damp. The rain was so recent that the trees are still dripping, making it sound as though it is still raining. Daniel opens the back of the van, grabs her by the ankle and pulls her towards him. She finally moans. He grabs her by the shoulders and tries to get her to sit up but she keeps slumping over.   
  
He shakes her and yells at her to sit up. "That's an order! Everything you do will be held against you!" She gives another low moan. There is a lot of blood in the van from the gash on her temple. Her slow response is making him angry. "You are resisting arrest! You are making it much harder on yourself!"  
  
She feels him grab her by the shirt collar and yank her out of the van. Her feet hit the ground and her knees don't even attempt to hold her weight. She folds up into a heap on the ground at his feet. She feels her body being moved around but her eyes cannot focus on anything in the pitch blackness around her. The darkness feels heavy on her body. She can't think straight and her voice won't work. Her body is willing her to just relax and fade into the safety of sleep.  
  
Daniel hooks his arm under hers and lifts her off the ground. Her legs still will not carry her, so he drags her across the yard and up the steps to the porch, and drops her face down in front of the door. He unlocks the door and goes inside to retrieve a lantern, that he lights and sets on the porch next to her. He stands there for a second looking at her. A smile slowly comes to his lips, then it abruptly turns to anger as he says, "Look at what you've done. Look at all the mud you've dragged onto this porch." He crouches down, grabs her by the hair, and lifting her head up closer to his face he screams at her, "How many times do you have to be told to wipe your feet! I am going to clean you up and then I will decide your punishment."  
  
He walks to the end of the porch and around to the side of the cabin where there is an aluminum tub of water with a few blocks of ice floating in it that were once the size of Tupperware bowls. He dips his hand in and decides that it needs to be refreshed. He walks back into the cabin and pulls a bag of ice out of the freezer and makes a mental note that he needs to start making more ice.   
  
Taking the lantern, he walks back out to the porch, stepping over her, mumbling under his breath, "I swear you just go out of your way to make more work for me. I work all day with the scum of the earth and then I have to come home to you!" He breaks up the ice in the bag by dropping it onto the porch several times, then he pours it into the tub and swirls it around with his hand until his fingers start to ache from the cold. "There." He says happily. "It's ready."  
  
Gina moans from the cramps she is starting to feel in her arms. She is trying to clear her head but she can't even focus her eyes in the darkness. Her hands are beginning to tingle like they have fallen asleep and her head is pounding so hard she can hear her pulse in her head. She calls for help and she is surprised at how weak her voice is.   
  
Suddenly she is being hoisted off the ground. She can not tell by what or who. She tries to speak but she can hardly muster enough breath to make a sound. Then she notices a light. It is getting closer and she now has something to try and focus on. She is being lead, almost carried by someone towards the light. She asks him who he is and what is happening to her. He does not answer her. She can't even tell if she is speaking out loud.  
  
She has become aware that her hands are cuffed behind her back and that someone is holding her up. He is talking quickly, wildly, and she can not understand what is going on. Her knees bump into something and before she realizes what is happening, she feels herself falling forward.   
  
Her arms try to snap forward reaching the limit of the cuffs, as she tries to bring her hands out to break her fall. Then suddenly her face slams hard into the icy water. Her body instinctively draws a deep breath from the shock of the icy cold and her lungs fill with water. Her own weight pushes her to the bottom of the tub. She begins to cough violently causing her to inhale more water. She can not get air and she can't right herself. Her legs are thrashing, her lungs are burning and there is a ringing in her ears and then...sudden silence.   
  
Daniel sees her body jerking wildly and he presses hard against her to feel it. He wraps his arms around her torso and lays his head on her back submerging himself into the ice water with her. They are together. His body moves with her every motion. He is wildly excited.   
  
Then he feels it abruptly end. "No!" he screams as he pulls her out of the water, and throws her down to the floor on her back. He pushes on her stomach and water trickles out of her mouth. He grabs her shoulders and shakes her hard. He tries slapping her face. Nothing. Anger wells up inside of him. He slams her hard against the wooden porch screaming at her, "You bitch! You can't do this to me! I'll kill you...you bitch!" But it is no use, she is already dead.  
  
His body is shaking with anger. He gets up and drags her into the cabin. He pulls from the cabinet, a plug that has only bare wires dangling from the other end. He knows that they can bring people back to life using electric shock. He will try this on her.   
  
He plugs in his cord, and touches the wires to her thigh, but instead of the usual little spark, there is a huge flash when the wire touches her wet clothing. Startled, Daniel jumps backwards, dropping the wires onto her leg. She does not move, even as the electric shock surges through her wet body. Even as her pants begin smoking and then ignite into a flame.   
  
The light above flickers and goes out. He kicks the wires away from her with his foot and pulls it from the outlet. He stands there staring at her, smelling her burnt flesh, watching the smoke rise off of her. He sits there until his anger turns to sadness.   
  
Once again he has failed. He was just beginning to feel good and then she goes and dies. He drags her body outside and props her up against the porch rail, sobbing out loud. He points her gun at her face and fires. He sits down facing her and scoots himself back as far away as he can get, until his back is against the cabin wall. He stares for hours, crying, wondering what he is doing wrong. She was so good at it. She could keep 'him' alive, why can't he keep 'her' alive. She looks the same sitting there, as she had looked the first time all those years ago. A faceless police uniform.   
  
Suddenly it comes to him. The uniform signifies the end. When she would put the uniform on and leave for work, he would be safe. It was the uniform that made it stop, and the cop out of that uniform that was evil. He needs to find a cop in her regular clothes, like she was when she was at home. He couldn't believe that he didn't realize this sooner. It will be harder to do, but he must find one that has changed out of the uniform and into the disguise of regular clothes. 


	5. Irony

Thanks for all the reviews, I'm glad every one is enjoying this dark story.   
  
Chapter Five:  
  
"Irony"  
  
The officers of the third shift are getting ready for roll call. They are just hearing the news that during the night another cop disappeared. They are all sharing whatever rumors they've heard, about who it was and how it happened. Bosco mentions that they should all hurry to roll call because he heard that they are forming some special task force. As he leaves the room they all joke about the fact that Bosco, who is always late for roll call, is now hurrying them along. Faith mentions that he has been acting pre-occupied and showing off lately, like he does when he is seeing a new girlfriend. "I hate when he's like this." She muses.  
  
As they walk into roll call, they notice that there are six new uniformed officers, all female, waiting in the room. One by one they begin to recognize them. They are all female detectives from their own precinct.   
  
Faith walks up to one and says, "Beth, I didn't recognize you in your blues."  
  
"They aren't 'my' blues. I can't fit into my blues any more." They both laugh then Faith asks her what's going on. She confirms that another cop is missing. "It's getting pretty serious. Three in four days. This guy has huge balls. He is abducting these girls right out from under their partner's noses. So...we are going to saturate the streets with female officers and see what he does."  
  
Faith gives a chuckle an says, "Huh...I love the irony."  
  
"What irony?"  
  
"The fact that you cops are going under cover...as cops."  
  
The room is filled with catcalls and whoos. Faith and Beth look over to see sergeant Cruz walk into the room. She is wearing her uniform, but it doesn't fit her the same way every one else's does. Hers has been tapered in and pleated to accent her chest and it is unbuttoned to show her cleavage. The pants were also tapered so that they are skin tight on her and as a final fashion statement; she has her hat tipped slightly to the left.  
  
Faith and Beth burst out laughing but quickly stifle it. Faith whispers, "You think she has a vest on under there?" and Beth answers, "She couldn't fit a band aid under there." And then adds, "I should have worn my own uniform...it would be just as tight as hers is." They share a laugh until the lieutenant calls for everyone's attention.   
  
"Ok...listen up. As you've noticed, we have some new patrol cops." The guys start the catcalls again. "Settle down. We have a serious problem out there. I'm sure you've heard by now that officer Gina Ascioti from the 63rd is among the missing. This guy is getting bolder but also more careless. He called the 911 dispatch and said he had been mugged on the street. He made the call only two blocks away from the 63rd. Ascioti and her partner, Pete Conti, responded and found 'this guy'..." He holds up Gussler's drawing. "...standing on the street by a black van. The guy had blood all over him and was very convincing that he had been mugged. He told them that the mugger ran down an alley and had gotten in a car at the end of it. Pete went to check it out leaving Gina to tend to the victim. Pete told Gina to call for back up and a bus but, for whatever reason, she never made the call. By the time Pete had reached the end of the alley, Gina was not responding on her radio."   
  
Bosco asks, "What kind of a black van was it?"  
  
Lieu gives them the description and Bosco asks, "Do we have even a partial on the license plate?" Cruz answers "no" at the same time as the Lieutenant. They look at each other, and Lieu says, "You can direct your questions to Sgt. Cruz now. She is in charge of this assignment."  
  
Cruz starts by telling them that there is going to be a shuffling of partners so in each car there will be one male and one female officer.   
  
"We want you all to make yourselves visible. Especially you women. We want this guy to notice you."  
  
Sully says, "Oh he'll notice you in 'that' uniform."  
  
Everyone laughs but her. "I modified my uniform precisely for that purpose. I want to be the one to catch that bastard. When I walk out onto that street, I want him to see 'me'."  
  
Faith says, "If I was wearing that uniform, I wouldn't be 'able' to walk."  
  
Cruz shoots back, "Well then it's a good thing you're not wearing it officer Yokas, because you are going on foot patrol."   
  
Faith snickers, "Why because I made a joke about your uniform?"  
  
Cruz says, "No...because I put you in the schedule that way, that's why." She looks down at her paper and continues, "Yokas will be on foot patrol with Candy. Boscarelli...you will be riding with me. Sullivan...you will ride with McCain..."   
  
As she continues reading off the list, Bosco looks over at Faith. He can tell she is pissed off. He whispers to her, "Why do you have to antagonize her."  
  
She whispers back "She has it out for me. I didn't antagonize her, she made that list before she walked in the door."  
  
Cruz finishes reading off the list and tells them, "Well...get goen. You ain't gonna catch him sitten here."  
  
As every one else heads to the door, Faith walks up to the Lieutenant. "I need to talk to you Lieu."  
  
Cruz walks up and asks, "Is there a problem officer Yokas?"  
  
"Ya...there is ." She snaps at her. "Why am I not worken with my partner."  
  
"This is a special assignment, special circumstances." Cruz answers.  
  
"Right, Male and female partners. I get it. But me and Bosco are 'already' a male female team. There is no reason to partner us with other people."  
  
"Lots of people can't work with their regular partners. I don't hear anyone else complainen."  
  
"You know that worken with a new partner adds an element of risk. You are purposely putting me in danger...out of spite."  
  
"Now why would I do that?"  
  
"Because you don't like me."   
  
They stare at each other for a second, then Cruz says, "I'm not switching the schedule around to please one cop." She walks away, then turns back and adds, "If you're afraid, maybe you can take some vacation time until we catch this guy."   
  
Cruz walks out the door and Faith starts after her. Bosco and the lieutenant stop her.  
  
Lieu tells Faith that he agrees with her but he can't do anything about it right now. He tells her to work with Candy for today and he will talk to Cruz's boss and get it fixed. Reluctantly she agrees.  
  
[Bosco and Cruz are going out on patrol]  
  
Bosco didn't want to show it in front of Faith, but he was just bursting with excitement to be working with Cruz. She is the Sergeant in charge of the anti-crime unit, which he has been trying to get on. She was someone who could really help his career along. He loves her 'take no crap' attitude. She is pushy, bossy, and she knows how to get the job done, even if it means bending the rules a bit. She's also hot...and she specifically partnered herself up with him.   
  
He struts out to the cruiser and finds her sitting in the driver's seat. "I usually drive." he informs her.   
  
"Well today you get to ride." she tells him without looking up.  
  
"That's fine with me...you know...in case I need to chase a skell or something."   
  
"It frees you up to do the paper work, although we won't be taking any calls. We have only one goal out here today."   
  
After riding together for a while his attempts at small talk prove to be futile. He tries to get a little more personal, to find out what kinds of things she likes, or a little about her family, but she notifies him that this isn't a date. She tells him...no she orders him, to study the picture of the perp and start looking for him.   
  
She finally pulls the car over and tells him they are going to walk around and be seen. They park the car and he walks over to her and ask which way they should head.   
  
"You just follow me. Stay about a half a block behind me. Maybe he will try to come after me."  
  
"Right. Good plan." But he is really disappointed. He was hoping to buddy up to her a little so she would request to work with him more. She walks ahead of him and he keeps a keen eye on her. Man, he never saw a woman look so good in a police uniform before.  
  
Maybe this lunatic will go after her and then 'he' will be the one to catch him. This could work out good after all. Still...he is bored walking alone. He misses Yokas.   
  
His mind wanders off to when he and Yokas were new partners. They hit it off right away. Well, not exactly right away. She has a 'take no crap' attitude also. They have a way of venting at each other. That is what he misses most. He wonders how she is doing with Candy, although he's sure she'll be fine. Yokas can handle anything.  
  
[Yokas is on Foot Patrol with officer Candy]  
  
Candy says to Faith, "So who did you piss off to get stuck on patrol with me?"  
  
Faith forces a little smile, knowing that his joke isn't far from the truth. "Oh c'mon Candy, you know I love foot patrol. The cold, the walking, being one on one with the dirt bags." They both chuckle.   
  
He tells her, "It is kinda nice to have someone to talk to for a change. Let me know when you need to rest. I've got a running tab at every diner and coffee shop in the 55th."  
  
Faith has always liked Candy even though he has a reputation for being on the 'take'. He is a plump, pleasant, black guy, with a wife and kids, and a popularity on the streets that is unequaled. All afternoon children have been approaching him and asking him for candy from the brown bag that he carries. His name has become his trademark. Even the older kids ask him for candy. Every one he passes knows him by name. He has carved himself a nice little career out here on the streets. So what if he rolls a drug dealer or two. The good he does, far outweighs the bad. This assignment is turning out better than she thought it would. It's a nice change listening to Candy's stories about his kids instead of hearing Bosco's stories about his latest romantic conquest.   
  
[Daniel is out on his own patrol]  
  
  
  
Daniel is on the prowl in his van. It seems that everywhere he looks he sees female cops, riding in the cruisers, directing traffic at an accident, writing tickets. He even saw one that looked like a hooker in uniform. She was disgusting, nothing like his mother. He never realized that there were so many of them. This would have been perfect yesterday. He could just cause an accident and then he would have his pick from two or three...but now his task is going to be more difficult.  
  
He decides to drive to the 55th and leave his van parked a few blocks away. He will have to wait for one of them to end her shift and maybe even follow her home and wait till she is out of uniform. He watches the front of the precinct. There are many cops coming and going, all of them in uniform. He really hates not having a plan. Hunger finally gets the best of him so he walks a few blocks down and enters a diner.   
  
Daniel can not believe his luck. Sitting right at the counter are two cops, a female and her partner, who is quite heavy and out of shape. He didn't even see a police cruiser out front.  
  
He orders some food and tells the waitress that he is in a hurry.   
  
In between bites of her hamburger, Faith is telling Candy stories about what he can look forward to when his children become teenagers. The two are laughing and enjoying their dinner so much, that they don't notice Daniel watching them. When they get up to leave, Faith tries to pay the bill but the waitress will not hear of it. It seems Candy was not kidding about his tab. He pays for nothing every where he goes. She feels uncomfortable about it, but finally she concedes and leaves a tip instead. As they leave the diner, so does Daniel.   
  
This is working out perfect for Daniel. They are on foot patrol which means he can follow them from a block away and not be noticed. They won't be jumping into a car and speeding away from him. And now he can start forming a plan. He will watch her tonight and find out when her shift ends, what kind of car she drives and maybe even where she lives.   
  
As Faith and Candy walk down the sidewalk, they come upon a little girl about four years old, crying for her mother. Several people walk past the child and no one stops to help her. Faith asks Candy if he recognizes her. He tells her no, he don't think she's from the neighborhood. He crouches down, says hello and offers her a piece of candy. She looks frightened. Candy asks her what her name is and she darts past him and wraps her arms around Faiths leg.   
  
Faith bends down and picks her up. Resting the little girl onto her hip she starts talking to her in a motherly tone. The little girl calms down. Faith asks her if she is hungry. She nods shyly. "How would you like officer Candy to get you a hot dog and you can eat it while we go look for your mommy." She smiles and nods. Faith tells him to skip the bun and just bring her a red hot. While Candy walks over to the hot dog vender, Faith starts asking the girl questions about where her mommy might be. Was she in a store? Was she looking at clothes or maybe furniture?   
  
Daniel is watching. He feels anger welling up inside. Look at her acting sweet to that little girl when in reality she wants to harm her. How dare she put on this show in front of people. Daniel starts pacing nervously. He wants to yell at her to put that child down. He wants to run and grab her away so she won't be harmed. Everyone is walking right by and no one is trying to stop her.   
  
He starts shaking and his hands are balled up into fists. He looks around wildly. Why does no one else get it? They all see only the uniform and not what she really is underneath. It takes all of his self control to keep from running over there and pounding her until she lets the child go.  
  
He follows them as they walk from store to store. He wants so badly to get that child away from her. Her partner walks with her, completely oblivious to what she is going to do when she gets that child home. And then finally, a woman runs up and does what he has been wanting to do. She takes the child from her. She picks the little girl up and starts hugging her. Thank God. But that was too close for Daniel. He has to stop her before she gets another chance. He follows them a little closer.  
  
[Back to Bosco Following Sgt. Cruz]  
  
Bosco is still about a half a block behind Cruz. He notices that a guy has stopped her. The two start talking. Bosco removes his hat so he isn't as noticeable as a cop and slowly approaches. When the two of them walk to the alley together Bosco bolts after them. He reaches the corner with his gun drawn and peeks around. She is coming on to the guy. When the guy tries to kiss her, she slaps him. He throws his hands up and steps back yelling obscenities at her. She does her best to goad him into doing something but the guy just storms away calling her names. This isn't the guy they are looking for.  
  
Bosco's radio sounds off. "55David respond to 41 Harvest on the west end." He yells to Cruz, who is walking angrily towards him, "We got a call."  
  
She walks past him and barks "So tell them we're busy. I said we ain't taken any calls."  
  
"Right. It's not in our jurisdiction any way."  
  
She snaps around quickly. "It's not? Ask if it pertains to our assignment."  
  
Bosco radios in and the answer is yes. They run to the car and head to the scene. Along the way, Bosco says, almost to himself, "I wonder what they found."  
  
Cruz answers, "A dead body."  
  
Bosco looks over at her and asks, "You think Wilson's dead?"  
  
"I'm sure of it." Bosco raises his eyebrows but before he can ask the next question, Cruz continues, "The coroner places Lucas' death four or five hours prior to Wilson disappearing. The minute he grabbed Ascioti, I knew that Wilson must be dead. Plus, this guy was covered in blood, you know, to look like he was mugged. He got some on Conti's jacket and it turned out to be Wilson's. She's dead...I'm sure of it. What I don't know is who's body did they find? Hopefully it's Ascioti's."  
  
Bosco glances over at her and says, "You mean hopefully it's Wilson. We may still have time to find Ascioti alive."  
  
She answers with absolutely no remorse, "No...if it's Ascioti, that means he will be out hunting for another. We have a better chance of finding him while he's hunting."  
  
Bosco looks away from her. He can't believe how cold she is. Was it working Anti-Crime that made her so hard he wonders. He considers how different she is from Faith. He thinks about something Faith had said about her, 'she is so wrapped up in doing the job... that the people she is suppose to be doing it for, mean nothing to her'. Faith said point blank 'She's no good'.   
  
They arrive at the scene. The street is roped off with police tape and is surrounded by police cars. Forensics is there and so is the coroner. In the middle of it all lies a body, bloodied and broken, and clad in a police uniform. The body is lying face up just off the side of the road. Her left arm is bent backwards in an inhuman position and most of her face is missing.   
  
As they approach, Bosco slows his pace unsure of whether or not he really wants to get a closer look. He can't believe how hard this is for him. He has seen hundreds of dead people and even bodies that have been dead for weeks, but this...all he can focus on is her uniform. This could be any one of the people that he works with every day.   
  
As he gets closer, he can hear the flies. There are thousands of bugs crawling over the flesh, that was once her face. Her shirt sleeves are rolled up and there are large blisters...burns maybe, on her arms. Bosco can see dark bruises around her wrists. But there is little blood. She was obviously killed somewhere else and dumped here. Another odd fact that Bosco noticed...her clothing seemed wet.   
  
He suddenly feels queasy. Cruz walks right up and starts looking the body over. The first thing she does is pull back her collar and check her neck. There is what looks to be a rope burn and bruises in a finger like pattern. She is asking questions and barking orders and Bosco can only stand there trying not to puke. After what seemed like an eternity, Cruz tells him to drive them back to the house.  
  
They drive back in silence. Bosco is trying to get the image out of his mind. He can't bring himself to talk to Cruz. He wonders if she noticed how much this is bothering him. He guessed not. She was pre-occupied with her role in all this, as she writes notes on what she saw. Faith would have noticed. She could always tell what was going on in his head. He had an urge to radio her, to make sure she was alright, but thought that would really make him look weaker in Cruz's eyes. And he don't know what he would say to her anyway. He really just wants to know that she is ok. He decides to just concentrate on the road and try to pull himself together.  
  
Back at the station house, Cruz takes Bosco into the anti-crime meeting room.  
  
He has never been in this room. It is restricted to authorized personnel. The room is divided into three different sections of clutter, each one holding all the clues and secrets to a different crime. There are bulletin boards with crime scene photos with various notes written and tacked up around them. Across the top of the boards is a time line with different times circled and notes written all over it. It is the accumulation of evidence and theories all laid out to be studied by teams of cops working to solve the most horrific of crimes in the city.   
  
Cruz walks over to a stack of files and picks one up mumbling something to herself, and starts riffling through it. Bosco picks up a sheet of paper that has an extensive list of license plates from black vans printed on it. Then he walks up to the bulletin board and begins, against his better judgment, to look at the photos.   
  
He recognizes the photo of Maria Lucas in her uniform. The same photo they ran in the paper. Then a photo of her body lying in the grass face...faceless...down. Next he is looking at photos of bruises and burns and the same rope burn around her neck. He knew that she had been abducted and killed but he didn't know what she actually went through.   
  
He says out loud, "What else don't I know?" Cruz looks at him puzzled. He says to her, "What did this guy do to her...before he killed her?"  
  
For the first time, there is no apathy in Cruz's voice. "He's a sick son-of-a-bitch. It seems that he likes to inflict pain. He must get off on it. In fact, Lucas was already dead when he shot her in the face. He apparently wasn't trying to kill her. He shot her out of anger because she didn't survive his torture. The Bastard. That's what the profiler is telling us. And it looks like he did the same to the one we found today, which ever one she is. Without a face we'll have to wait until Forensics IDs her. "   
  
Bosco asks, "Are we gonna be here for a while? I have a phone call to make. I gotta cancel an appointment." She tells him to go ahead.   
  
He goes straight to the Lieutenant's office and asks him if he talked to Cruz's boss yet. Bosco tells him that as much as he wants to ride with Cruz and be involved with Anti-crime, this case is something that he and Yokas would be perfect working together on. He tells him that Cruz has a different way of working a case and he has some leads he wants to follow but his hands are tied because Cruz is a Sergeant calling the shots.   
  
The Lieutenant tells Bosco that he did in fact talk to Cruz's boss and even he agreed that it would be foolish to separate them during this assignment. "Tomorrow you two can ride together again. I'll tell Yokas tonight when she finishes her shift." 


	6. Loosing Faith

Thanks again for all the great reviews. I love reading them...they motivate me.  
  
Now...the chapter you've been expecting...  
  
Chapter Six:  
  
"Loosing Faith"  
  
The day went quick working with Candy. And although she should be tired from being on her feet all day, Faith actually feels pretty good. As Faith walks out of the station house, Bosco pulls up next to her in his car. "Hey want a ride home?"  
  
"I thought you had a date?" she answers.  
  
"I do, but she's used to me being late."  
  
"Naw...thanks anyway. Go on your date. It's a nice night, I feel like walking."  
  
"K...see ya tomorrow then. Hey, the lieutenant talked to you didn't he? About us riden together tomorrow?"  
  
"Yah, he did."  
  
"Look what I got for us." He holds up a computer print out. "It's the run down of all the black vans in New York."  
  
"So?"  
  
"So...we can spend the day doen some real police work. We'll check em all out to see if we can find our cop killer."   
  
"Aren't there detectives doen that?"  
  
"Yah but you know how they are...they don't go door to door. I wanna nail this guy."  
  
"Ok Bos...tomorrow...we'll find the cop killer. Or at least his van."  
  
She watches Bosco's blue mustang drive up the road without noticing that Daniel is across the street, standing in the shadow of a doorway, watching her. As she slowly walks up the street, he steps out from the doorway and begins to follow her from his side of the street. He speeds up his pace until he passes her.   
  
He realizes she is not walking to a car, she is walking home. And she is walking directly towards his van. This is even better than he thought it could be. He won't have to wait until tomorrow. Smiling, he crosses the street diagonally, hurrying to get to his van before she does. He unlocks the driver's door, looks around the empty street, and sneaks a peek in her direction. He then goes around to the back of the van, opens the doors and waits for her to get there.  
  
Faith is thinking about the missing cop. How frightening for her family, especially knowing that the first two have been found dead. She is probably dead too. Fred has already started nagging her about taking time off from the job until this psycho is caught. The thought of having one more thing for them to argue about weighs heavy on her mind. That's why she wanted to walk home, she was in no hurry to get there.  
  
As she walks, her instincts of a cop have noticed the man crossing the street towards her. She slings her tote bag over her shoulder and stuffs her hands deep into her pockets so it can't be snatched by someone running past her. However, without really thinking about it, she has already assessed that the angle he is walking is not directly at her, it is towards the van. She also noted that she heard the jingle of car keys and assessed this person to be no threat to her. This wrong assumption could prove to be fatal.  
  
One moment she is arguing with Fred in her mind and the next second she is being pulled backwards out of her thoughts as an arm wraps around her chest and a hand clamps down hard over her mouth. She screams but it is all internal. The sound is muffled in her throat. She tries to pull her hands out of her pockets but he has her wrapped so tight that she can't move her arms.   
  
Her mind is racing, trying to think of what to do in this situation, but it is too late for anything. She feels her feet come off the ground. In one motion she is arched backwards and twisted to the side, and then slammed hard to the pavement like dead weight. Hers and his. The air rushes out of her body as the hand moves from her mouth, to the back of her head. His hand grabs a fist full of hair, lifts her head off the ground and slams it hard against the pavement several times until she stops resisting.   
  
She is unconscious as he lifts her into the back of his van. He looks around to see that no one is watching, but there is no one and he knows it. This one went perfect. Each time he gets better. He wants to be more like her. She was good at taking him to the threshold of death and then yanking him back at the last possible second, making him live for the next session. This one will last. He can sense it. This one will live as long as it takes for him to get his redemption.  
  
He reaches his exit off the Jersey Turnpike and drives on into the night. They have driven for fifteen or twenty minutes when the van hits a bump that jars them and shakes Faith awake. She moans softly as she tries to reach her hand to her head which is throbbing fiercely. Reality floods in and clears her mind of the fog as it dawns on her that her hands are bound behind her back and her feet are bound together. Her body aches as she tries to roll over onto her back, and she remembers the force of hitting the pavement. It feels as though she may have bruised ribs.   
  
It is dark in the van. There are no headlights or streetlights, flashing across the windshield so he must have driven out of the city. The van is bouncing like they are on an unpaved road. She can see just a bit of his profile as he drives. There is nothing familiar about him. What the hell does he want? Is this the guy that is abducting cops? She tells herself it isn't because she was not wearing her uniform when he did this. She tells herself to stay calm. Even though she is now aware that she is bound with handcuffs. She forces herself not to think about who's they may be, and instead focuses on finding something in the van that she can defend herself with.  
  
Her eyes are beginning to adjust to the dark and she can see the handle to open the back of the van. It is recessed into the door. She would have to slip her fingers under it and pull it out and up. It will be impossible to do without him noticing her. Maybe if she can slip the toe of her boot under it, she can lift it and kick the door open and someone will see that she needs help.   
  
She wriggles herself down towards the door and as she struggles with the handle, he sees her in the mirror. He slams on the breaks causing her to loose the foothold she had on the door. She yells for help and starts pounding the door with her feet, hoping that someone may be outside to hear her, as he grabs her under her arms and drags her back towards the front of the van.   
  
He swings around so that he is now straddling her and lowers his weight onto her chest, pinning her between his knees. He clamps his hands over her mouth and nose and lowers his face to within inches of hers and says forcefully, "You have the right to remain silent."   
  
His wild eyes dart quickly from side to side as he stares into her face. "Remember how this feels" She can't tell if it was a question or a statement. Tears roll down her cheeks as she struggles to break his grip over her mouth. She is terrified. She needs air. Her hands are being crushed under her body and her chest hurts; from the fall, from his weight, and from trying to breathe in air from under his hands.   
  
He closes his eyes and tips his head back slightly and inhales a deep slow breath, as if he is trying to suck in all the energy that is escaping from her body as she desperately tries to gasp for air.   
  
Her lungs are heavy now. Her body is shaking from the strain of trying to suck in air. Faith is slipping away. He is killing her and she has no more strength to struggle with. Her body heaves beneath him, and his eyes shoot open as if he just realized what he is doing, and he removes his hands.   
  
She draws a deep breath and begins coughing. She tries to roll over so she is face down but he won't let her. He watches her struggling to get her breath as if he were studying her. After a few minutes he decides that he'd better get driving again. He stands up and un-cuffs her hands and then re-cuffs them around the bottom of the front seat so she won't give him any more trouble.   
  
She asks him what he wants with her. He strikes her hard in the left temple, stunning her into silence, then he grabs her face, forces her look at him and yells, "You must remain silent! Anything you say will be used against you!" Then leaning in close he whispers, "I have a gun, and if I have to, I'll blow your fucking head off." Then he leans back and smiles at her as if he just had a fond memory.   
  
She says no more as they drive away, for fear that he will surely kill her the next time. 


	7. Shared Tears

Thanks for all the reviews...I'm enjoying them as much as you're enjoying the story.  
  
Chapter Seven:  
  
"Shared Tears"  
  
Boscarelli is in bed sleeping. It is 6:10 am and his phone rings. He is startled awake and as it rings a second time, he reaches over and slaps the alarm clock off. When it rings a third time, he opens one eye, takes a peek at the clock and picks up the phone. In a sleepy voice he says, "This better be important."  
  
A mans voice says from the other end, "Bosco, is my wife there?"  
  
Bosco rolls over and looks at the empty spot next to him in his bed and says, "I don't know who this is but your wife is not with me. Don't call here again."  
  
"Bosco, it's me...Fred."  
  
"Fred? Do you know what time it is? I just went to bed a few hours ago."  
  
"I know what time it is...Faith never came home last night. I don't know where she is." Then he starts talking faster. "She always calls if she's going out after work. Even then she always gets home in time to get the kids off to school. She don't even answer her cell phone. Now the kids are late and I'm gonna be late. I'm really worried..."  
  
Bosco can hear the panic in his voice. He sits up on the edge of the bed. "Fred hold on. I'm sure she's ok. Did you call the precinct?"  
  
"Yes. They're no help. They keep telling me that her shift starts at three and I should call back then."  
  
"Ok. Did you call any of her friends to see if she went for breakfast?"  
  
"That's why I called you. Did you see her last night when she left? Was she with anyone?"  
  
"Alright. Let me think...I saw her...I offered her a ride home. She said she wanted to walk. It sounded like she was going straight home. Are you sure she didn't come home and go out again?"  
  
"I'm not sure of anything except that she is always home for the kids. Or she would call to make sure that I got them up for school. Something's wrong, I can feel it."  
  
Bosco doesn't want Fred to hear it, but he is also starting to get worried. "Did you call the hospital?"  
  
"No I didn't. Jesus Bosco."   
  
"I don't think she is hurt...just...maybe she came across an accident and went to the hospital with the vic, that's all I meant. Call there. The nurses know her. They'll tell you if she was there or not."  
  
"Ya think? I mean...ya think that's what happened?"  
  
Bosco says, "Make the call Fred. I'll call some of the guys and see if anyone knows anything. Then call me right back."  
  
Fred calls the hospital and Bosco calls Sullivan and Doc. Within a few minutes they are talking to each other on the phone again.  
  
"Any luck?" Bosco asks.  
  
"No...you?" Fred responds.  
  
"No." He stops to think and then says, "Alright, I'm gonna make one more call and then I'll meet you at the precinct."  
  
"Ok. I gotta get the kids to school first, then I'll come right there." Then Fred says quietly, "You don't think...this can't have any thing to do with...you know...those missing cops."  
  
Bosco replies as convincingly as he can, "No Fred. I'm sure she's ok. Faith can take care of herself."  
  
He hangs up the phone and dials Sergeant Cruz's cell phone. She answers it, "Sergeant Cruz."  
  
"Yah...this is Boscarelli. You didn't...uh...they didn't find the body of that missing cop yet, did they?" He knows that the killer wouldn't have grabbed another cop unless the one he had was dead.  
  
"As a matter of fact, I got the call a few hours ago. Why? What do you know?"  
  
Bosco's heart dropped into his stomach. "Damn it! Faith's husband just called me. She never came come last night. She's missing."  
  
"I didn't hear about this. When was she last seen?"  
  
"Last night. She was walking home after her shift."  
  
"So was she wearing her uniform home?"  
  
"No...but..."  
  
"Well that isn't our guy's MO. Your partner is probably having an affair, or doing something she doesn't want her husband to know about."  
  
"Faith wouldn't...." Cruz hangs up before he can finish.   
  
He glances at the phone then hangs it up. He sits there on the edge of the bed for a minute. There has to be an explanation as to where Faith is and why she didn't come home or call. There has to be. He tries to remember the conversation he had with her the night before, but there is nothing there to give him a clue to where she may be now. He is getting a bad feeling in his stomach. As he gets dressed, he thinks about what he's going to do when he gets to the station house. And he clings to the words that Cruz said, 'that isn't our guy's MO.'  
  
[Back at Daniel's cabin]  
  
It is early in the morning and it's still dark. The fire had gone out in the fireplace hours ago so it is dark and cold in the cabin. Faith can feel herself starting to fall asleep. She has been fighting it all night and she is exhausted. She can't fight it off any longer.   
  
She can feel herself drifting...drifting...then the sudden rush of falling and she snaps herself awake again. But for that few seconds, the dead weight of her body drops on the rope around her neck. Her throat closes off and she starts gasping for air. Her body wants to cough but it can't. She is choking.   
  
Her hands are still cuffed behind her back and they frantically grab at the wall that she is standing against, but there is nothing there to grab on to. She lifts up onto her toes and steadies herself as she tries to lift her weight off the rope that is becoming tighter as she grows weaker.  
  
Daniel wakes to the sound of her choking. He feels the coldness in the cabin and goes to the fire and brings it ablaze again which lights up the cabin enough that he can see her standing, almost hanging across the room. Slowly he walks towards her. Staring...Elating. He can see her lips moving. She is trying to speak but the only sound that she can make is small gasps. He is fascinated.   
  
He puts his hands on the wall behind each side of her head and leans in close to her. She is begging him to help her. He can make out the word 'please'. Her face is wet with tears. He leans his ear close to her lips so he can hear every sound she makes, bringing his face closer to hers...so close that a tear touches his cheek and runs down his face. His eyes flutter closed and they are sharing something that he has never shared with anyone before.   
  
He stays there for a few minutes more, not moving, just absorbing. It feels good. Then he steps away and unties the rope. She collapses to the floor and lets out a gasp of air. He removes the rope from around her neck and gently touches the mark it left on her skin.   
  
He also removes the cuffs from her wrists that have embedded themselves into her flesh. She feels the relief of their removal but her arms have been in that position for so long that she can't feel her hands or move her arms, and pain stabs at her shoulders. Everything hurts and she feels nauseous. Her body finally gives in to it's desire to shut down.   
  
[Bosco arrives at the station house]  
  
It is weird for him to be here at this time of the day. Something feels terribly wrong. A ford truck is parked in his parking spot. There are all different cars parked in the usual parking spaces and the faces he sees milling around are distantly familiar. The feeling in his gut tells him that things are not going to get better.  
  
As he approaches the front desk, he notices a group of officers wearing latex gloves searching through a tote bag. It looks vaguely familiar to him and as the officers notice him walking up, they all stop and look over at him...including the day sergeant, who says, "Boscarelli...I tried to call you at home."  
  
He asks what they are doing, and it dawns on him that the bag they are searching belongs to Faith. He had seen her fill it a hundred times getting ready to go home. He looks up at each of the officers, that are still staring at him, and says, "What's going on?"  
  
The sergeant puts his hand on Bosco's shoulder and says, "Foot patrol found this bag in the street this morning."  
  
Bosco says, "It belongs to Faith."  
  
"I know. All her ID was in it. Her badge, her wallet...even her money. So we know she was not mugged. We called Cruz in on it." He pauses, waiting for some response from Bosco, and when none comes he continues, "I tried to call her husband but there was no answer. I was told that he called here looking for her."  
  
"He called me. He is on his way over here. Don't let him see you digging through her stuff, take it into the interrogation room. Did you find anything else? An eyewitness?"  
  
"Bloodstains." Was all the sergeant said.  
  
Bosco feels himself welling up and quickly says, "A huh...I see...I have to go change. Let me know when Fred gets here." He quickly walks away.  
  
Bosco goes into the men's room and splashes water on his face. He looks at himself in the mirror as he wipes his face with a paper towel. He sniffs and wipes at his nose. His eyes are red and he looks like hell. He only had a few hours of sleep and it's going to be a long day. He takes a deep breath and lets it out slowly. Soon he will have to talk to Fred. He decides that he will go with what Cruz said, and tell him it can't be the cop killer. Even though he knows different in his heart.  
  
He heads into the locker-room and starts putting on his uniform. He pulls a paper out of the pocket of his jeans and unfolds it. It is the paper he showed to Faith last night with a list of all the black vans in the city. There are so many. Four hundred and twenty two just in New York city alone. The list is made in order of location, the closest to the 55th on the list first, then getting farther away down to the end of the list.   
  
He is staring at the paper but his mind suddenly draws up an image of Martin...Lucas' partner. He remembers how Martin looked the last time Bosco saw him in the parking garage. Bosco feels, like Martin looked. He remembers telling Yokas that Martin should be doing something to find his partner and Yokas said 'What good would it do to be running around the city.' He stares at the list and says out loud, "It will make me feel like I'm doing something."   
  
Just then the door opens and someone yells in that Yokas' husband is here. Bosco snaps out of his daze and hurriedly finishes dressing. When he walks out of the locker-room he spots Fred sitting on a bench near the desk. He has his face in his hands and he is shaking his head. The lieutenant is standing over him and so is Cruz. She is holding Faith's bag which is tagged and wrapped in plastic. He walks over and stands directly in front of Fred and says, "It's gonna be alright. I'm gonna find her."  
  
Cruz adds, "We are all looking for this guy. It is just a matter of time before we get him."   
  
Bosco grabs Fred by his shoulders and says, "Look Fred, I know what you're thinking and it isn't that guy. She is not with the cop killer. Who ever did this does not know she is a cop. She wasn't in her uniform, she doesn't have her badge or any ID on her. This is something else."  
  
Fred looks up at him wiping his eyes, and says, "Then what is it? Where is she?"  
  
Bosco says, "I don't know but I'm not going to think the worst." He holds out the paper and flashes it quickly to Fred and says, "I've already got some leads. I'm going to check em out now." And before anyone can ask what leads he is talking about, he walks out the door. 


	8. The Nightmare

I want to thnk everyone again for the great reviews. And thanks to Orison for correcting my spelling...wish you'd told me sooner. lol  
  
Chapter Eight:  
  
"The Nightmare"  
  
Bosco climbs into an RMP and pulls out his list. With it he also has a copy of the drawing of the suspect. The first three vans on the list belong to a delivery business called 'Post Haste'. Bosco heads over there. These three vehicles had been crossed off the list with a highlighter by the detectives working for Cruz. He can't be sure whether or not they actually investigated them or just crossed them off the list because they were 'business' vans, and he can't take the chance of not double checking.   
  
He arrives at 'Post Haste' and only one of the vans is there being loaded. There is a large logo on the side with the company name and phone number. There was no mention by the eye-witnesses, of anything written or painted on the black van. Taking a closer look he realizes that the logo is a magnet. It can be peeled off and put back on. He feels hopeful, although he knows what the odds are, that the first place he looks will solve the case. He makes them unload the whole van and he searches for clues, blood stains in particular, but he finds nothing. He has the owner radio the other two vans and have them return so he can search them too.   
  
Bosco searches the two vans, after making them unload their packages, and again finds nothing. And no one connected with this company looks even remotely like the picture of the perp. He can cross these three off his list and move on. He looks at the list. It is so long. Looking at his watch, he calculates that he took almost three hours to eliminate only three vans. He is going to need help if he wants to find Faith alive. He finds a phone and calls Sullivan. Sully tells Bosco he will meet him at the precinct and that he will pick up Davis on the way.  
  
As Sully and Davis change into their uniforms, Bosco gives them both a copy of the list. Each list has a different section circled for them to investigate. Bosco explains that the detectives had already eliminated these vehicles as suspect but at the delivery company he just checked out, the owner said no cops had ever come there to look in his vans. They didn't actually check each van, they reasoned them off the list. They took this important piece of evidence and just wasted it. If it weren't for their shoddy police work, this guy could have been caught by now.  
  
They walk out to the cars together and Bosco tells them what he learned from Cruz about the killer's profile. He tells them that the victims were already dead when they were shot and that during the night, the body of his last victim was found, so it is probable that he has Faith. He explains to them that this guy isn't really trying to kill his victims, and that is why they have to hurry. Because the victims have all died from being tortured. "If this guy has Faith, we have to find him soon. We're running out of time".  
  
[back at the cabin]  
  
Faith wakes up on the floor, still in the same position that she had collapsed into. She doesn't know how long she has been laying here but she can see daylight through the tiny window in the cabin. She can smell bacon and eggs, and coffee brewing. Then she spots him sitting at the table. He hasn't noticed that she is awake and she plans to keep it that way for as long as she can.   
  
She studies the cabin. It is very small. There is a cot in the corner to her right and a fireplace in front of her. The table is in front of that to the right, almost in the middle of the floor and behind him is a small refrigerator, stove, and a sink surrounded by a few cabinets. The door is directly in front of her to the left of the fireplace.   
  
Faith moves her feet a little to see if they are still cuffed. They are. Bolting to the door is not an option. The only thing she sees that she can use as a weapon is the fireplace poker laying on the floor about twelve feet in front of her. It seems so far away from her, but everything else in the room is behind him.   
  
She assesses her injuries. Her chest and shoulders ache a lot, but her throat hurts the most. It feels swollen and restricted. It is very hard to swallow. Her head also hurts. Her arms are still feeling prickly from being behind her back all night. She can move them, but her motor control is bad. She moves her left arm slowly, watching him to make sure he isn't looking at her. She brings her hand up to her face and she can feel a welt on her forehead.   
  
Then she realizes that he has not moved a muscle since she noticed him there. He is sitting perfectly still at the table. His eyes are open wide and his mouth is also open. He is staring at nothing that she can see. She would describe the look on his face as one of terror.   
  
This guy is not crazy, he is absolutely insane. If he were crazy she could talk to him, try to reason with or confuse him, but this guy is just dangerously insane and in his own little nightmare, oblivious to what is happening around him. She decides to try and crawl over to the fireplace very slowly and grab the poker before he comes out of his trance and afflicts what ever horror he is observing, onto her.  
  
She doesn't get very far when he suddenly snaps his head in her direction. He stands up quickly sending the chair toppling backwards to the floor. She lifts herself up to her knees and lunges towards the poker. She grabs it with her right hand, but he reaches her and steps on her arm with his full weight. She yells out in pain. He grabs the poker away from her with little effort and slams it down hard, driving the point into the back of her hand. She screams out again. He throws the poker across the room and sits down on her back pinning her shoulders with his knees. Her right hand is crushed and bleeding. The pain makes her nauseas and she vomits.   
  
He grabs her hard by the hair with both hands, and as he stands, he draws her up with him, getting her in a choke hold around her neck, then heads towards the door. With her feet still cuffed, she is being dragged helplessly. She holds his arm with her left hand and tries to carry her weight so she can breathe. He drags her out to the tub of water on the side porch and starts scolding her about the mess she made. He is talking wildly, yelling about things she doesn't understand. Things that didn't happen. At least, things that did not happen today.   
  
He drags her over to the edge of the tub. She realizes what he is planning to do and she struggles viciously against him. He drives her to her knees, but not before she scratches his face and bloodies his nose. He is now pressing against her back with all his weight, and bends her over the tub. She puts her hands into the bottom of the tub and stiffens her elbows to keep her head above the water.   
  
She is fighting hard against him and he is enjoying the struggle. He reaches into the tub and grabs her broken hand, that is swollen and already oozing blood into the water, and squeezes it hard. She screams out in pain and then her elbows buckle. Her face hits the water. She pushes her head up one more time and takes a deep breath of air and then he pushes her head into the water and holds it there with both hands.   
  
He is shaking with excitement. He lays his head onto her back so he can feel her struggling beneath him. He is breathing hard. Her hands are grabbing at the rim of the tub and grabbing at his hands to try and scratch them off of her. She places them on the bottom of the tub and tries one more time to lift her head above water. But she can't.  
  
He feels her exhale beneath him and he watches her breath bubble up out of the tub. He feels her body convulse and quickly pulls her out and throws her backwards onto the porch. He pushes on her stomach and she violently coughs up water. He says to her casually. "And that is what it feels like to drown." He sits back exhausted and elated. He watches her struggling to breath between coughs. And he feels such relief.   
  
  
  
[At the same time]  
  
Bosco has only been able to eliminate two more vans off his list. He went to three other addresses where there was no one home. He is getting frustrated. He needs to be doing more. He can't even bring himself to think of what Faith may be going through. He calls Sullivan on the radio. "How's it going?"  
  
"Slow. I feel like I'm not getting anywhere. I went to four addresses before I found one person at home. And that van came up clean."  
  
"I know...this shift sucks. Everyone is working. Maybe this is a waste of time. Maybe I should just go back and look over the files. There may be a clue there that no one has noticed."  
  
Sullivan tells him they should keep trying. What other clues can there be. If there were finger prints we would have a name and a face by now. This is the right thing to do. Tonight when their real shift starts, they can check the vans of the people that were not home earlier. He tells Bosco that he just pulled up at the next location on his list and the van is in the driveway. He will let him know if he comes up with anything.   
  
Sullivan Walks up the driveway and looks in the back window of the van. He double checks the license plate to see that it matches the one he is looking for. He cups his hands around his face and again looks into the back window. He sees that it is packed full of band equipment. Amplifiers, sound board, a drum set, guitars, everything a band needs, including microphone stands. Sully walks to the house and knocks on the door and a young man in boxer shorts, with messy hair and a sleepy face, answers.   
  
The young man says, "Oh man...not again."  
  
Sully says, "Are you Mark Bruer?"   
  
The guy answers, "Yes. What do you want now? Don't make me tear the van apart again. We played out last night and I just loaded this stuff in a few hours ago. I need some sleep dude."  
  
Sully asks him if any other police officers had been here recently and the man tells him that just last week they made him pull everything out of the van and searched it. He also said that they asked him where he was on a certain date. He told them that his band played at a club on the night that they were asking about, and they were going to check that out. "I assumed they did and wouldn't be back to bother me. I didn't do anything wrong...in fact, I don't even know what they think I did."  
  
That was good enough for Sully. He doesn't have time to double check every van. He thanks the guy for his cooperation and tells him that it won't be necessary to look in his van a second time.  
  
In spite of the encouragement he just gave to Bosco, Sully feels that their task is hopeless. The number of vans they need to search is overwhelming. The guy they are looking for is killing his victims in less than a forty-eight hour period. They have only about twenty four hours left to find her. Yet...this is Faith they are trying to save. She isn't just another cop, she is one of their buddies. He looks up the next address and heads over.  
  
[Back at the cabin]  
  
The sun has come out and it is already drying up the water that had splashed out of the tub. They both lay there, her; struggling to clear her lungs of water, and him; struggling to hold on to his feeling of satisfaction. His thoughts are soft for the first time in so long. He feels as though he could sleep a deep, dreamless sleep, something he hasn't done in a long time. As he watches her, his finger is tracing a scar on his arm. The scar is from a burn, and it is in the pattern of a spatula. And it matches the ones on his legs and back. Daniel feels so good that he decides to treat himself to a cook out tonight.   
  
He will have to get some groceries and he is trying to decide what he will do with   
  
her while he is gone. He can hang her in lockup like he did at night or he can cuff her to the bed. Or...he can place her in solitary confinement like she used to do to him when ever she would go out. Daniel smiles.   
  
He can't wait for her so see it...to experience it. She will be very proud of how he had to improvise because she would obviously not fit in his tiny oven, so he made a crate out of two by fours and plywood, three feet by two feet wide, and just under two feet high. In the bottom he placed rebarb every two inches to make it feel like an oven rack and there is a padlock on a hinged top. He stands, and leaves her there while he goes to get the key for the padlock and the second set of hand cuffs.   
  
When he returns, she is still lying in the same position, curled up on her side, with her arms cradling her stomach and chest. He kneels down behind her and leans over her to grab her hands and apply the cuffs. She suddenly rolls over and slams her elbow hard into his face, catching him just below his right eye. He leans backwards and covers his face with his hands.   
  
Raising up to her knees, she grabs his shoulders and throws all her weight at him, knocking him onto his back. She is on top of him. She lays her right forearm across his neck, and grabbing her wrist with her left hand, she presses with all her might. She is sobbing out loud as she holds her weight on his throat.  
  
At first he doesn't even try to fight back. He just stares up at her in shock. Then his anger flares. He flips the key around in his hand so that it is sticking up through his fingers and he punches it into her side several times until she finally gives in to the pain and reaches back to stop him. As soon as she releases his throat, he overpowers her, throwing her off of him. He begins yelling wildly and hitting her in the face until her arms fall limp to the ground, then he rolls her over and cuffs her hands behind her back.   
  
He drags her around to the back of the cabin where he built his crate. He opens it, and with unbelievable ease, he lifts her into it. She is on her side in the fetal position with her knees bent all the way to her chest. She starts to wake up as he closes the lid. It pleases him that he got to see the look on her face as she realized what he was doing.   
  
[The search goes on]  
  
Ty Davis is having better luck with his list. So far he has only one van he didn't get to check and he has four crossed off his list. As he heads to the next address, he can't help but think about what Bosco had told him. He wants to remain hopeful, but the odds of them finding the van, especially after the detectives have already ruled this list out, are close to zero. The van they are looking for may not be from New York city. It may not even be black, considering that all the eye witnesses saw the van at night.  
  
Ty checks the time. It is almost eleven thirty. He considers breaking for lunch but decides to check one more van out first. He is almost at the location anyway. He slows down to look for the building. He has a hard time finding it because one of the numbers had fallen off the building. He is getting flustered and feeling the pressure of time running out. He finally finds the address and hurries inside and climbs up to the fourth floor.  
  
He knocks at the door and there is no answer. He kicks the door out of frustration. Ty heads back to the entrance and on his way out he passes an apartment with a superintendent sign on the door. He pauses for a second and decides that it would be smart to check with him. He knocks on the door and an old Italian man in a white t-shirt and suspenders answers the door.  
  
Ty explains that he needs to talk to the tenant that lives in apartment 413. The Super asks him why. Ty tells him that he may have been witness to a crime and he needs to ask him some questions.   
  
The super says, "He still isn't back. I told the cops last week that I'd call when he comes home."  
  
"So this guys been out of town?" Ty asks.  
  
"He drives a truck. He's almost never here. He is a perfect tenant."  
  
"What type of truck does he drive?"  
  
The super answers, "He drives a big semi. He drives cross country, so he could be gone for weeks at a time."  
  
"Does he own a black van?"  
  
The super answers, "Yah."  
  
"Can you show me where the van is parked?"  
  
"No. It isn't here."  
  
"What do you mean, someone's using it while he's away?"  
  
"No...he parks it where he works. He leaves it in their lot."  
  
"Do you know who he works for?"   
  
The super is starting to get a little annoyed at the questions. "Look...I'm not his room mate, I'm just the super. They would have that information at the office."  
  
"Ok thanks." Ty starts to leave thinking that it would really be a waste of time to go to the office and then drive to where this guy works, when the guy was out of town while all of this was happening anyway. He decides to cross this van off the list and move on.  
  
He gets to the exit and a thought comes to him. He goes back to the super's apartment and knocks again.  
  
"What now?" the super says impatiently.  
  
Ty pulls a paper out of his pocket and unfolds it. It is Gussler's drawing of the cop killer. "Does this look anything like your tenant in 413?"  
  
"That looks exactly like my tenant in 413. Is that a wanted poster? What did this guy do?"  
  
Ty feels like he was hit with a jolt of energy. "Are you serious? This guy lives here and owns a black van? Look again. I need you to be sure."  
  
"Yah that looks like him. I mean it isn't a photo...but that's him"  
  
Ty grabs his radio and calls into central, that he located the suspect connected to the disappearances of the female officers. "I repeat I have located him. I am at 413 at Union. Requesting a search warrant for named address and requesting ACU to respond. " Then he starts drilling the super with questions about how long this guy has been gone and when was the last time he saw him.  
  
Bosco, along with most of the squad, hit their sirens and race over to that location.   
  
[Back to Faith]  
  
Faith keeps floating in and out of consciousness. Her lungs feel heavy, and with her legs pressing against her stomach she can't draw a full breath of air. The crate is so small that her head, back and knees are pressed against the sides, and soon, each point is wrenched with pain. Her hands are cuffed behind her back and she can feel that her circulation is already being cut off to her hands.   
  
Her right side is resting on bars and the whole design is meant to be unbearable. She can feel blood soaking through her sweater where he stabbed her with the key and it is getting more painful as well. Every time she moans, she needs to cough and every cough, sends more pain through her chest. Her legs are cramping up and she is loosing the feeling in her arms and she has never before hurt so much that it would make her pass out. She is now delirious from the pain.  
  
She tries to shift her position but she is too constricted. Her shoulder is falling asleep. The seatbelt is too tight. As she tries to adjust it, the cruiser swerves. Bosco is yelling at her to stop. Her arms feel heavy and she can't lift them. The car swerves dangerously all over the road. The harder she tries to steer the car, the more it goes out of control. She slams on the breaks and the car screeches to a stop. Suddenly she is being pulled out of the car. She is grabbing at the door to stay in the car but Bosco slides into the drivers seat and she is now behind him watching him drive.   
  
She is calling to him but he can't hear her. She yells louder. He just keeps driving. She yells so hard that her throat hurts and it makes her cry. Then she realizes why he can't hear her. She's not in the back seat, she's in the trunk. It's dark and she can't breathe. Her hands reach up to push the trunk open. She needs to get out. She needs air and she is panicking. She pounds hard on the trunk and finally it opens. Through her tears she sees all of the guys from her squad standing there looking into the trunk. They are standing there in silence, staring.   
  
She keeps telling them to help her get out, but they aren't listening to her. They are all staring with this horrified look on their faces. But they are not looking at her...they are staring at something in the trunk behind her. She turns to look and she sees that there is a dead body in the trunk with her. It is bloated and rotting. She screams and tries to push it away with her feet. The torso moves away but the head pivots towards her. The harder she pushes it away, the closer it's face keeps getting to hers. Their foreheads touch and then she suddenly realizes that she is looking at her own face. The dead body is hers. She screams harder. She screams right through the pain. And when she wakes up...she is still in the crate...screaming. 


	9. Going With Her

I still don't own the Third Watch characters but I own the ones they don't.  
  
This is the last chapter so I'll just say thank you one last time for the great reviews you all gave me. And for the ones I didn't get yet. (hint hint)  
  
Chapter Nine  
  
"Going With Her"  
  
Daniels apartment is filled with cops. They are searching it for clues. So far they have found no evidence that Daniel had ever brought any of his victims here. No blood, and no signs of a struggle. While the detectives search, Bosco walks out into the hall and converges with Sully and Davis. They all look upset. They have a name, but they are no closer to finding Faith.  
  
Sully asks, "What do we do now?"  
  
Davis has a suggestion. "The super told me that this guy Finch drives a truck. He leaves his van on the lot where he works while he is away. Maybe the van is parked there. Faith may be in it."  
  
Bosco says, "It's worth a shot...lets go."  
  
They pull the super out of the crowd and take him to his apartment and make him call the office to get the information on where Daniel works. On their way out of the building, they run into Dale Martin, Tommy Collins and Pete Conti. They hurry over to Bosco and asks if they've caught the guy. Bosco says no. Then Martin asks if they found Yokas. Bosco tells him she wasn't in the apartment, but they are on their way to look for the van in hopes that she will be in it.   
  
The three men tell Bosco they are going with him. Bosco says that one of them can ride with Sully and the other two can ride with him. Sully agrees with the plan. He feels that in the event that they find Finch, it will be good to have a lot of backup, however he worries that he is riding with a lynch mob rather than a police convoy.  
  
They arrive at 'Gator Trucking.' Sully goes in to talk to the owner while the rest of them search the lot for Daniel's van. After talking to him, Sully radios them to meet him back at the car...he has new information. The owner of the company told Sully that Daniel is on vacation. He has a cabin somewhere in Jersey. That has to be where Faith is. They call in to central and have them run the information through the computer to find out where Finch's cabin is located, and within minutes they are en route to Daniels cabin. They notify the Jersey police and ACU to meet them there.  
  
[At the same time]  
  
Daniel arrives back at the cabin with a bag of groceries and a bag of charcoal. He takes them inside and puts the groceries away. He grabs the charcoal and gets a can of lighter fluid out of the cupboard and as he turns towards the door, he notices the blood stained key on the table.   
  
He thinks of her out there in solitary confinement. He pictures the look on her face as he was closing the lid. He was planning to leave her out there until after dinner but he is too excited to wait. Excited to see how she felt out there. Excited because he plans to interrogate her and extract a confession from her. He is going to make her confess to what she did to him as a small boy. He grabs the spatula and the key and walks out the door.  
  
Faith is breathing in short quick pants. She wants to take a deep full breath but it is too painful and there is very little air in the crate. She imagines how good it would feel to stretch out her legs. Thoughts and images keep rolling through her mind and she can't tell what is real anymore. She tries to think about escaping from him. She thinks about Fred and her children. She wonders if they are looking for her. And she believes that she will die here...that she will never get out of this coffin. She thinks of her friends finding her body.  
  
She hears the key in the lock but it isn't until the top is open and the sunlight stabs at her eyes, that she realizes it is really happening. The sun is so bright that it stings her eyes making them tear. She briefly sees the silhouette of someone leaning over her before she squeezes her eyes shut. She begs whoever it is, to help her.  
  
Daniel looks in the crate and a feeling of euphoria surges through him. It makes him shiver. He kneels down next to the crate and his eyes fill with tears. She understands now...he can tell. This is exactly how he used to look when she would come home and get him out of the oven. Her hair is wet with sweat and she is in tears, pleading frantically for him or anyone to help her, through short labored breaths. He knows the pain she is feeling. It is 'his' pain she is feeling.   
  
Faith is barely conscious as Daniel lifts her out of the crate and carries her to the porch. She takes a deep breath of fresh air. Relief overshadows the pain that is stabbing her arms and legs as she tries to move. Her muscles are starting to relax and the cramps are subsiding. She moans.   
  
Her mind can not process what is happening. She thinks she is being saved. Her eyes are still closed and she feels like she is floating through a dream. Her lips are dry and cracked, and in a horse whisper she says Fred's name, vaguely aware that she spoke out loud. She hears Fred answer her. He tells her that he has a surprise for her and he hopes she enjoys it as much as he is going to. She opens her eyes and sees Daniel's face, and passes out.   
  
[Meanwhile]  
  
Bosco, accompanied by Martin and Conti, is flying down the Jersey Turnpike with full lights and siren. Close behind him is Sully, with Davis and Collins. They are almost to exit 13A that leads to the hamlet of Portersville. About fifteen minutes behind them, is Cruz leading a convoy of unmarked ACU vehicles.   
  
Just on the outskirts of town, in front of a small road that leads to the wooded hunting area, is a Jersey trooper, waiting for the New York cops to arrive. And farther down that road, are three more Jersey state troopers and two sheriff cars, blocking the dirt road that leads to Daniels cabin. The team of cops is studying the area and laying out a plan to surround the cabin as soon as the sharpshooters arrive.  
  
All day they have been collecting information on Daniel Finch. Although he has no prior record, he has been in the system in foster care since he was seven years old. They found out that his mother was a cop at the 55th back in 1970 and in her record were several recommendations for her to receive psychiatric evaluations until 1974, when she was removed from the force because she was found to be mentally unstable. The day she was fired, she committed suicide, by shooting herself in the face. That was when they discovered that she had been inflicting horrible forms of abuse on her young son, Daniel.   
  
Daniel was present when his mothers suicide was discovered, and he spent years in a mental institution afterwards. He didn't speak for two years. When he finally did speak, he had no memory of his mother or the ordeal she had put him through. His doctors thought it was in his best interest to leave the memories buried and move him out of the institution. So they declared him cured and put him into foster care.   
  
The scars that the doctors had found on Daniel's body, from his mothers abuse, were consistent with the marks found on all of the dead cops. There is no doubt that they are after the right guy. They can only hope that they are looking in the right place...and that it is not too late.  
  
[At the cabin]  
  
Faith wakes up and finds herself sitting on the floor of the porch, with her back against the railing. Her feet are tied together and her arms are spread out crucifix style, with her wrists handcuffed to the railing cap. She is very cold. Her arms are exposed and she knows that he must have something planned for her. There is a small hibachi sitting on a table nearby and a charcoal fire has been started in it. She also notices a gun laying on the table next to it. Daniel is not in sight. Somehow she needs to get that gun before he returns.   
  
She tries to slide over towards it, but the handcuffs are locked onto the rail in such a way that she can not slide them in either direction. She tries to use her legs to knock the table over, but it is just out of her reach. She looks around desperately for something, anything, but then Daniel comes walking around the corner of the porch. He is sipping on a bottle of pop. Her mouth is so dry that she can't swallow and she would give anything for just one sip, but she doesn't dare speak to him. He doesn't acknowledge her sitting there. He walks over to the fire and fans it. He almost looks like a normal guy on a picnic.  
  
Faith thinks about all the training she's had on how to deal with troubled people. She was taught how to talk to suicidal and schizophrenic individuals. And she learned that if anything you say makes them violent, you just say nothing. She doesn't even know his name.   
  
Obviously at some time in his life, he was treated badly by a cop. His affliction towards women must stem from his mother, and Faith guesses that probably she married a cop who beat him as a child. She had noticed that he has scars on his arms, he was probably abused. He hasn't given her any indication of what she can say or do that would make him more docile. It seems that he is not really trying to kill her, it 's more like he just wants to keep hurting her. And while he is hurting her, he seems almost...affectionate...in a twisted kind of way.   
  
_____________________________________________________________  
  
Soon, Bosco and the others arrive at the blockade, escorted by the State trooper. A few feet ahead is a clearing, and they can see the cabin with the black van parked out front. They haven't yet seen Daniel or Faith. There is a team of cops moving into position through the woods to surround the cabin. Finally, one of the troopers radios in that he can see Finch and his victim on the porch at the rear of the cabin. The victim looks injured but she is alive. They all breathe a sigh of relief.   
  
_________________________________________________________  
  
Faith is so cold that she is shivering uncontrollably now, and for the first time since this ordeal started she realizes that she hasn't eaten. She hurts all over, she is having trouble breathing, and she is getting weaker by the minute. She can't take any more. She has to do something before he kills her, so against all her training, she decides to try talking to him. If she can get his name or tell him hers, then the situation becomes more personal, maybe that will make it harder for him to want to hurt her. So she softly says to him, "My name is Faith...why don't you tell me your name?"  
  
He reels around quickly and stares at her angrily. His left eye twitches and he barks at her, "What is this, some sort of cop trick?"   
  
"No. I just thought..."  
  
"Are you trying to say that you don't know who I am!" He screams at her.  
  
"If you tell me your name I may remember..."  
  
"You don't remember?" He is wild with anger now. "I'll make you remember. You'll remember!" His voice has become hysterical. He storms away and enters the cabin talking to himself loudly. He is livid that she doesn't know what she had done. All day they were connecting. She was feeling what he had felt. He thought that she understood. And now, just like then, she has hurt him.  
  
___________________________________________________________________  
  
There is about seventy five yards of open field between the cabin and the woods. The sergeant radios the officers in the woods and asks if they should try to cross it and position themselves against the front of the cabin.  
  
"Negative" is the reply. "The target is moving. He is heading to the front of the cabin."  
  
And now they see him come around the porch and go inside. Bosco gets up, planning to charge the cabin and get this guy, but the others grab him and wrestle him back. As they argue, Daniel comes back out of the cabin and again goes around back. Sully pulls Bosco aside.  
  
"Bosco, I know how you feel but you have to use your head. You could have just made this situation much worse. If he sees us here, we'll have a hostage situation on our hands. We're not close enough to the cabin to reach her before he does. He may even kill her just so we can't save her." Bosco stops struggling with Sully. He hangs his head, knowing Sully is right, but he needs to do something. Sully continues. "You are too close to this. Let them handle it."  
  
_____________________________________________________________  
  
Faith knows she made a mistake. Possibly a fatal one. She looks around desperately for something to protect herself from his rage. She can not remember him. She knows that she has never seen him before. She is only the symbol of whom ever it is, that he thinks he's punishing. What can she say to him to calm him down? How can she make him see that she is not who he thinks she is? He is coming back. He is carrying a towel. He is consumed with rage now and he is ranting. He rushes up to her and kneels down straddling her legs and puts his face up close to hers. She can feel his breath on her face. She closes her eyes as if that may shield her from him.   
  
She says to him frantically, "I remember now. I'm sorry, I do remember you now. Please...stop. I'm sorry."  
  
He screams at her, "Remember this?" Then he grabs her head and yells, "Look at it. Do you remember this!" She opens her eyes and sees that he is waving a dish towel at her.  
  
She says, "Please. I do...I remember now. Please...don't hurt me. I'm really sorry I forgot."  
  
He says "You're lying."   
  
"Please...stop." She begs, but he grabs her by the throat.  
  
As she opens her mouth to get air, he slams his fingers, wrapped with the towel, into her mouth. She tries to bite him but she gags, allowing him to stuff the towel in farther. Because of the beating earlier, her nose is broken and she cannot breathe through it. He keeps stuffing the towel in farther, trying to force it down her throat.   
  
Her tears are flowing hard now and she tries to shake him off her. He is within inches of her face and screaming, "Do you remember now? This is what it feels like to die from suffocating." She is struggling so hard against the cuffs, that both her wrist are bleeding. She is getting weak. Her body is starving for air, and she can feel the effects now. Her eyes are closing and she can't hear any sound. She can't even feel him on top of her any more.   
  
_______________________________________________________________  
  
The radio sounds off. "Target is assaulting his victim...waiting for instructions."  
  
The sergeant grabs the radio and says calmly, "Take him out." Almost instantly a shot rings out. And in the same instant, Bosco takes off running towards the cabin.   
  
Police are running out of the woods towards the cabin from every direction. The first ones to reach her, are the Jersey cops that were in the woods directly behind the cabin. Two of them approach Daniel, one holds his weapon on him, while the other checks for a pulse.   
  
Daniel is laying sprawled on his back over Faiths legs. His eyes are open in a serene look as though he never saw or felt the shot, which was a direct hit in the dead center of his forehead. Two other cops are tending to Faith. One is un-cuffing her while the other, after having removed the towel from her mouth, is checking her neck for a pulse.  
  
Bosco has reached the porch. As he rounds the corner, and surveys the scene, he sees the cop remove his fingers from Faith's neck and shake his head 'no' at the other. But...she can't be dead, Bosco tells himself...we got here. She has to be alright. We're all here now.  
  
The two cops have removed the hand cuffs and are gently laying Faith on her back on the porch. Bosco runs up pushing one of the officers out of his way. He grabs her face in his hands. "Faith...look at me...Faith." He shakes her. "Faith...open your eyes! Look at me!"  
  
He feels a panic erupting in himself. "Help me!" he yells to the other cops. Bosco starts giving her mouth to mouth. His mind is racing, as he tries to remember what they taught him about administering CPR.   
  
He starts chest compressions, counting quickly to five. "One, two, three...Faith...stay with me!" He looks up at the cops, but they are just a blur through his tears. "Help me!" He yells desperately.  
  
The two officers give each other a pained look and one of them says, "The EMTs are on their way...let them..."  
  
Bosco starts mouth to mouth again, then cradles her face in his hands, hoping to see her open her eyes. But she doesn't. He cries, "Somebody help me!" His voice is raspy. He starts chest compressions again.   
  
One of the officers grabs Bosco by the arm. "The EMTs are here...let them in." But Bosco shoves him away hard, knocking him backwards. Suddenly, someone has him by both arms, and he is being dragged away from her. He is trying to squirm away but he is wrapped up tight and shoved back against the wall. He tries to protest but he is crying and can't get the words out. And then through his tears he recognizes Sully. Davis has him in a bear hug, and Sully is trying to calm him down. Finally he stops resisting, and realizes the paramedics are tending to her.  
  
They all watch in anguish.  
  
The paramedics run up and kneel next to her. One listens to her chest, while the other starts taking her pulse as they exchange their medical dialogue. Bosco has heard it a million times...but it never meant anything to him before. He watches these strangers, wishing it was Doc and Carlos. They would not let her die. And if these morons let her...no....that can't happen. She has to be ok.  
  
"No breath sounds." The first paramedic says as he quickly wraps the stethoscope around his neck.  
  
"No pulse." Is the others reply back.   
  
The first paramedic opens a kit, and begins setting up a defibrillator. Bosco watches as he pulls out the paddles and squirts them with a gel, rubbing them together methodically.   
  
"Hurry!" Bosco yells. "Help her!"  
  
The first one reports, "Charging to 200 Jules." They wait as the monitor gives off a high pitch squeal.   
  
"Charged..." Then he says forcefully, "Clear!"  
  
Everything pauses as he hits the buttons, sending a surge that makes Faith's body jump, giving the appearance...for only a second, that she is alive. But then she falls limp.   
  
The second paramedic takes her pulse and shakes his head.   
  
The first replies, "Charging to 300." The machine charging, is the only sound that can be heard, as all of the officers, twenty in total, watch in silence.  
  
"Clear!" then 'whump', sounding and looking like Faith was hit in the back, as her body leaps in a quick convulsion...and then lies limp again.   
  
Checking her pulse, he shakes his head again.  
  
"Charging to 360." His voice now has a little more urgency in it.  
  
"Do something...help her!" Bosco screams, his voice sounding throaty.  
  
Not one of the officers look at him...all of them are looking nervously at the ground.  
  
As the monitor whines up one more time to the dead silence, the paramedic says once again... "Clear!" Then the painful sound of, 'whump'.  
  
In the tense silence...they hear, "We got her..."  
  
The paramedics are now animated in a series of procedures, but the rest of their conversation is lost in the officers chattering sounds of relief.   
  
Sully squeezes Bosco's shoulder, as Bosco grabs the wall for support. He looks around, almost in shock, as he wipes his eyes hard with his fingers. He catches a glance at Martin, expecting him to look happy like everyone else, but then he notices that Martin is staring at Faith, with a look of a man that has been cheated. It looks to Bosco as though Martin was feeling, that if Faith did not make it...Lucas' death would somehow be justified.   
  
Bosco yells, "Hey...what the hell are you looking at...you stop looking at her!"   
  
Sully grabs Bosco by the shoulders and tells him to let it go. Martin just turns and walks away without looking up.  
  
The paramedics have started bagging Faith and after a few seconds she starts coughing. Her eyes are open but she is very disoriented. Her hands try to slap away the oxygen mask as the paramedics fasten it over her face. They try to reassure her that she is ok but she doesn't understand. They hold her arms down, trying to get her vital signs which makes her more frantic. The paramedics finally get a line in and give her a sedative to calm her down.  
  
After the ordeal she went through, Faith is still in shock. She is not yet aware that they are trying to help her. They are trying to assess her injuries, checking over her broken hand, and trying to bandage her wrists. They try to put a dressing on the wounds in her side. She is pleading with them to stop. They have rolled Faith onto a back board, but all she is aware of is that they are hurting her. She doesn't even realize that Daniel is dead.   
  
They decide it would be best to just transport her. Several officers lift her to a stretcher, to be loaded in the bus. Bosco can hear her panic...he can see she is struggling against the paramedics, and turns his attention back to her.   
  
"It's ok Faith. I'm right here. You're gonna be alright." He turns to the paramedics and says, "I'm riding with her." He says loudly, hoping for Martin to hear him. "She's my partner ...and I'm going with her."  
  
He climbs into the back of the bus with her and takes her hand. Her eyes finally fill with recognition when she sees him, and then tears of relief, as she realizes that she is safe now, and this nightmare is over.  
  
~The End~  
  
I want to give a special thanks to my nurse friend for making sure my paramedics knew what they were doing, and a very special thanks to Lisa for convincing me the story was good enough to post, and for taking it upon herself to register the story with the WGAE, so if Third Watch wants to use the storyline, they have to put my name in the credits. How cool would that be! 


End file.
